Progress toward elimination of Haemophilus influenzae type b disease among infants and children--United States, 1987-1995

Abstract

Before effective vaccines were available, Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib) was the most common cause of bacterial meningitis among children in the United States, and an estimated one of 200 children aged < 5 years developed invasive Hib disease. From December 1987--when Hib conjugate vaccines were introduced--through 1994, the incidence of invasive Hib disease declined 95% among children aged < 5 years. Eliminating invasive Hib disease among children aged < 5 years by 1996 is a goal of the Childhood Immunization Initiative (CII). This report summarizes data about trends in invasive H. influenzae (Hi) disease during 1987-1995 from three separate surveillance systems (CDC's National Notifiable Diseases Surveillance System [NNDSS]; the National Bacterial Meningitis and Bacteremia Reporting System [NBMBRS]; and an active, multistate, laboratory-based surveillance system). The findings underscore the need for age-appropriate vaccination of infants and for complete investigation and reporting of cases of invasive Hi disease.