A LONGITUDINAL STUDY OF NEISSERIA MENINGITIDIS CARRIERS IN SUBMARINE CREWS

Abstract

A total of 342 men from both the Blue and the Gold crews of the Polaris submarine USS MARIANO G. VALLEJO (SSBN-658), were surveyed periodically over a 13 month period for the causative organism of meningitis (Neisseria meningitidis). It was found that the overall carrier rate was 26 per cent, with four per cent chronic carriers, 28 per cent always negative, and 68 per cent intermittent carriers. Of all isolates, 21 per cent were resistant to sulfadiazine. Group B was the predominant serogroup. The closed environment did not appear to influence the carrier rate or create a selective advantage for any one serogroup. It may influence the development of resistant organisms positively. It is concluded that the N. meningitidis carrier rate in seasoned military personnel is 26 per cent. The three factors of crowding, recruit seasoning, and the presence of chronic carriers are discussed.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Jun 06, 1968
Accession Number
AD0675814

Entities

People

  • Michael D. Smith
  • Russell J. Reit

Organizations

  • Naval Submarine Medical Research Laboratory

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Biomedical
  • Ground and Sea Platforms

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Amides
  • Biological Laboratories
  • Biomedical Research
  • California
  • Condiments
  • Culture Media
  • Environment
  • Immune Serums
  • Materials
  • Medical Personnel
  • Meningitis
  • Military Personnel
  • Navy
  • Palate
  • Preventive Medicine
  • Training
  • United States

Readers

  • Economics
  • Microbial Pathology
  • Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering.