Meningococcal Vaccines for Kids & Teens

What Are Meningococcal Vaccines?

Meningococcal (meh-nin-guh-KOK-uhl) vaccines help protect against meningococcal disease. This serious infection can lead to bacterial meningitis (swelling around the brain and spinal cord) and blood infections, which can be life-threatening if they aren’t treated quickly.

There are three types of meningococcal vaccines because different kinds of meningococcal bacteria cause meningococcal disease. The vaccines are mostly given to preteens, teens, and other people who are more likely to get the disease.

Why Are Meningococcal Vaccines Recommended?

Meningococcal vaccines help protect against meningococcal disease, which is very contagious (easy to catch from someone else). Doctors have given meningococcal vaccines to millions of people for decades, and they’re a safe and proven way to help your child’s body fight off meningococcal disease. In fact, one meningococcal vaccine (MenACWY) is part of the routine vaccine schedule.

When you get your child vaccinated with meningococcal vaccines, you’re helping prevent the spread of meningococcal disease, so you’re also protecting other people, too. This includes babies who are too young to get the vaccines, people who are severely allergic to them, and people with some serious illnesses.

How Do Meningococcal Vaccines Work?

Meningococcal vaccines contain killed, or inactivated, bacteria. (The vaccines can’t cause meningococcal disease.) After someone is given the vaccine, the body’s immune system makes proteins called antibodies, which can spot the germ. These antibodies last a long time in the body. This means that if the person is later exposed to meningococcal disease, the antibodies are in place and the body knows how to fight the disease so the person doesn’t get sick. This is called immunity.

Types of Meningococcal Vaccines

Currently, kids in the United States can get three kinds of meningococcal vaccines:

• Meningococcal conjugate vaccine (MenACWY) protects against four types of meningococcal bacteria (types A, C, W, and Y).
• Meningococcal B vaccine (MenB) protects against a fifth type of meningococcal bacterium (called type B).
• Meningococcal ABCWY vaccine (MenABCWY) is a 5-in-1 vaccine (called pentavalent) that combines MenACWY and MenB in one shot.

When Should My Child Get Meningococcal Vaccines?

When kids should get meningococcal vaccines depends on their age, health, and risk of getting sick.

Routine Timing

Most people get meningococcal vaccines during regular checkups in their preteen and teen years. The MenACWY and MenB vaccines can be given at the same time.

MenACWY

Vaccination with MenACWY is recommended:

• when kids are 11 or 12 years old, with a booster shot (a dose to help “boost” protection) given at age 16
• for teens 13–18 years old who haven't been vaccinated yet

Teens who have their first dose between the ages of 13–15 should get a booster dose between the ages of 16–18. Those who get their first dose after age 16 won't need a booster dose.

Some kinds of MenACWY are given to younger children (as early as 8 weeks of age) if they have a higher risk of getting meningococcal disease.

MenB

MenB isn’t yet recommended as a routine vaccine for all healthy people. But kids older than age 10 who are at a higher risk for meningococcal disease should get it.

Others who aren’t at increased risk can get MenB when they're 16–23 years old (ideally when they're 16–18, when their risk of getting infected is highest). Usually, they need two doses. The choice to get the MenB vaccine should be made together by teens, their parents, and the doctor.

MenABCWY

Kids ages 10 or older can get MenABCWY if they're scheduled to get MenACWY and MenB at the same visit.

Kids at Higher Risk

Some kids and teens have a higher chance of getting meningococcal disease. They may need the vaccine doses on a different schedule than others.

This can include kids who:

• Live in or travel to countries where the disease is common.
• Are present during a meningococcal disease outbreak (when a disease happens in greater numbers than expected in a certain area).
• Have some kinds of immune disorders. If the immune disorders are chronic (long-lasting), these kids also need a booster dose a few years later, depending on their age at the first dose.

College Students and Military Recruits

It’s easy for meningococcal disease to spread when a lot of people live close together. That’s why meningococcal vaccines are important for college students who live in dorms and for military recruits.

When to Delay or Avoid Meningococcal Vaccines

Kids can still get meningococcal vaccines if they have a simple cold or other minor illness. But your doctor might choose to delay the vaccine if your child has a more serious illness.

Talk to your doctor if your child ever had a serious allergic reaction, or any allergic reaction after an earlier dose of a meningococcal vaccine.

Are There Possible Side Effects from the Vaccine?

Meningococcal vaccines can cause mild side effects that go away after a couple of days. These include swelling, redness, and pain at the site of the shot. Sometimes kids may have a headache, muscle aches, a fever, or tiredness. As with any vaccine, there’s a small risk of fainting, and a very small chance of an allergic reaction.

Caring for Your Child After Meningococcal Vaccines

For pain or fever, check with your doctor to see if you can give either acetaminophen or ibuprofen, and to find out the right dose. Do not give ibuprofen to babies under 6 months unless instructed by your doctor.

A cool, damp cloth or a heating pad at the site of the shot may help reduce soreness, as can moving or using the arm.

When Should I Call the Doctor?

Call your doctor if your child has any symptoms of an allergic reaction (like swelling or reddening of the face, or hives) or doesn’t feel well after getting the vaccine.

What Else Should I Know?

Sometimes you might hear different names for vaccines that help protect against meningitis. Here’s what you need to know.

Are Meningococcal Vaccines and Meningitis Vaccines the Same Thing?

Meningococcal vaccines and meningitis vaccines are closely related. Meningococcal vaccines help protect against some kinds of bacteria that can cause meningitis. So when people say, “meningitis vaccine,” they often mean a meningococcal vaccine.

Other things (like viruses) can also cause meningitis. The Hib, measles, mumps, polio, and pneumococcal vaccines can help protect against meningitis caused by those germs.