II. Indications (age 10 years old or older)
- Serotype B Meningococcal Meningitis exposure
- Asplenia
- Sickle Cell Disease
- Specific immune deficiency (e.g. complement deficiency, or complement inhibitor use)
- College Students in dormitory, fraternity, sorority (age 16 to 23 years)
- Optional adjunct to Quadrivalent Meningococcal Conjugate Vaccine (MCV4)
- Required in addition to MCV4 by some colleges
III. Mechanism
- Covers only Serotype B Meningococcus
- Accounts for one third of meningococcal cases
- Serotype B outbreaks are most common in infants and college students
- Contrast with Menactra, Menveo and Menomune which cover serotypes A, C, W and Y
- Indicated for all U.S. children as part of the Primary Series
-
MenABCWY Conjugate Vaccines (pentavalent with added MenB coverage as of 2024)
- Pentavalent Vaccines that included MenB were Introduced in U.S. in 2024
IV. Medications: MenB Only Vaccines (FDA approved in 2014)
- See MenABCWY Conjugate Vaccine (includes MenB coverage in addition to MenACWY)
- Precautions
- Must use same preparation for both doses (not interchangeable)
- Three dose regimens are the standard protocol
- Two dose regimens may be used for healthy patients ages 16-23 years without other indications
- Used in College Students in dormitory who are not otherwise at increased meningococcal risk
- Two dose regimen at least 6 months apart (0 and 6 months)
- Otherwise use 3 dose regimens for all preparations (MenB-FHbp, MenB-4C)
- MenB-FHbp (Trumenba)
- Three dose series (0, 2 and 6 months)
- MenB-4C (Bexsero)
- Three dose series (0, 2 and 6 months)
V. Resources
- CDC Immunization Schedules (last accessed 10/28/2020)
VI. References
- (2025) Presc Lett 32(1):1-2
- Jacobson (2017) Vaccine Update,Mayo Clinic Reviews, Rochester, MN
- (2015) Presc Lett 22(10): 59
- Ackerman (2015) Am Fam Physician 92(6): 460-8 [PubMed]
- Cohn (2013) MMWR Recomm Rep 62(RR-2):1-28 [PubMed]