[Meningococcal project Telemark. Experiences after 5 years with contact tracing and eradication of the pathogenic bacteria in near contacts of the patients with meningococcal disease].

Since 1987 we have analysed throat samples from 1,086 healthy contacts of 32 patients with meningococcal disease. The disease-causing strain was found in contacts of 17 out of the 32 patients. 161 (18%) of the contacts carried meningococci, and 30 (3%) of them were carriers of the disease-causing strain as determined by DNA fingerprinting. The carrier strain was eradicated in 29 of these 30 contacts by treatment with rifampicin. No secondary case of meningococcal disease was observed. During the four-year period 1984-87, there were 39 confirmed cases of meningococcal disease, including 12 verified and four suspected secondary cases of meningococcal disease. Therefore identification and eradication of the disease-causing strain seems to prevent secondary cases. A change in the Norwegian recommendations for preventing secondary cases of meningococcal disease should be discussed.