WA Health has reported that a young adult has been diagnosed with invasive meningococcal serogroup B disease and is recovering in hospital.
Meningococcal disease is an uncommon but life-threatening bacterial infection that can affect the bloodstream and/or the lining of the brain and spinal cord. Occasionally, it can affect other parts of the body, including the throat, lungs or large joints.
Three other cases of invasive meningococcal disease have been reported in WA in 2026, including two caused by serogroup B and one by serogroup Y. In 2025, a total of 13 meningococcal cases were reported, 12 were serogroup B and one was serogroup Y.
There are two types of meningococcal vaccine available; one protects against four meningococcal serogroups (serogroups A, C, W and Y), while the other protects against serogroup B.
The MenACWY vaccine is offered free to all children at 12 months of age. In addition, the MenACWY vaccine is offered to all Year 10 students, with a free catch-up program for adolescents aged 15 to 19 years old.
Due to a higher rate of meningococcal disease in Aboriginal children in WA, the MenACWY vaccine is offered free to Aboriginal children aged from six weeks to 12 months old. The MenB vaccine is free for all Aboriginal children aged up to two years old.
Both these vaccines are also free for people of all ages with certain medical risk conditions. People who are not eligible for free vaccines can request them through their immunisation provider for a fee.
Meningococcal bacteria are not easily spread from person to person. The bacteria are spread by respiratory droplets from the nose and throat when coughing or sneezing but are not spread by saliva and do not survive for more than a few seconds in the environment.
Around 10-20 percent of people carry meningococcal bacteria harmlessly in the back of the nose and throat at any one time. Very rarely, the bacteria invade the bloodstream or other tissues and cause serious disease.
Symptoms of invasive meningococcal disease may include high fever, chills, headache, neck stiffness, nausea and vomiting, drowsiness, confusion, and severe muscle and joint pains.
Sometimes – but not always – a spotty red-purple rash may develop that looks like small bleeding points under the skin or bruises.
Young children may not complain of symptoms, so fever, pale or blotchy complexion, vomiting, lethargy (inactivity), poor feeding and rash are important signs.
Although invasive meningococcal disease can be treated with antibiotics, it can progress very rapidly. Anyone with symptoms suggestive of meningococcal disease should seek urgent medical attention.
With prompt treatment, most people with the disease recover. However, meningococcal disease can lead to death in 5 to 10 per cent of cases, and around 15 per cent of survivors may experience long-term complications such as hearing loss, limb amputations or brain injury.
