Abstract
The 23rd World Scout Jamboree was held in Japan from 28 July to 8 August 2015 and was attended by over 33,000 scouts from 162 countries. An outbreak of invasive meningococcal disease capsular group W was investigated among participants, with four confirmed cases identified in Scotland, who were all associated with one particular scout unit, and two confirmed cases in Sweden; molecular testing showed the same strain to be responsible for illness in both countries. The report describes the public health action taken to prevent further cases and the different decisions reached with respect to how wide to extend the offer of chemoprophylaxis in the two countries; in Scotland, chemoprophylaxis was offered to the unit of 40 participants to which the four cases belonged and to other close contacts of cases, while in Sweden chemoprophylaxis was offered to all those returning from the Jamboree. The report also describes the international collaboration and communication required to investigate and manage such multinational outbreaks in a timely manner.
Highlights
Definitions of mass gatherings vary greatly, with some sources categorising any gathering of more than 1,000 individuals as a mass gathering, while others require the attendance of as many as 25,000 people to qualify
Neisseria meningitidis isolates submitted to the Scottish Haemophilus, Legionella, Meningococcus and Pneumococcus Reference Laboratory (SHLMPRL) by regional diagnostic microbiology laboratories were characterised by standard phenotypic procedures (api NH (BioMérieux), Wellcogen N. meningitidis ACYW135 latex reagent (Remel Europe Ltd.) and monovalent meningococcus agglutinating serum (Remel Europe Ltd.))
The North of Scotland scouts were not vaccinated against meningococcal capsular group W (MenW) before the Jamboree, since the United Kingdom (UK) recommendations on immunisation of travellers do not include Men ACWY vaccination in these circumstances
Summary
Outbreak of Neisseria meningitidis capsular group W among scouts returning from the World Scout Jamboree, Japan, 2015. An outbreak of invasive meningococcal disease capsular group W was investigated among participants, with four confirmed cases identified in Scotland, who were all associated with one particular scout unit, and two confirmed cases in Sweden; molecular testing showed the same strain to be responsible for illness in both countries. The report describes the public health action taken to prevent further cases and the different decisions reached with respect to how wide to extend the offer of chemoprophylaxis in the two countries; in Scotland, chemoprophylaxis was offered to the unit of 40 participants to which the four cases belonged and to other close contacts of cases, while in Sweden chemoprophylaxis was offered to all those returning from the Jamboree. The report describes the international collaboration and communication required to investigate and manage such multinational outbreaks in a timely manner
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