Undiagnosed Bacterial Meningitis in Vermont Children

Fraser, D. W. (Center for Disease Control. Atlanta, GA 30333), J . E. Mitchell, L. P. Silverman and R. A. Feldman. Undiagnosed bacterial meningitis in Vermont children.Am J Epidemiol102:394–399, 1975. Community-acquired bacterial meningitis in Vermont children under 5 years of age was recognized less frequently in 1967–1970 in those towns with low total hospitalization rates than in towns with hospitalization rates above 15 admissions per 100 population. Using the towns with high hospitalization rates as a norm, it was found that towns with fewer recognized meningitis cases than expected had significantly greater rates of death from obscure causes in children 1–59 months of age in 1967–1970. It is suggested that about 17 deaths in 1967–1970 in Vermont children 1–59 months of age were associated with the failure to recognize bacterial meningitis in children from towns with low rates of medical care utilization.