The WHO Upgrades Meningitis Guidelines

Despite the availability of effective treatments and vaccines for certain types of meningitis, the disease continues to pose a significant global health threat.

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), various pathogens can cause meningitis, with approximately 2.5 million cases reported worldwide in 2019. This figure includes 1.6 million cases of bacterial meningitis, the most dangerous form, which led to around 240,000 deaths.

Around 20% of people who contract bacterial meningitis develop long-term complications, including disabilities that impact quality of life. The disease also carries heavy financial and social costs for individuals, families, and communities.

One area of the world is disproportionately impacted by meningitis.

The U.S. CDC says the African' meningitis belt' in sub-Saharan Africa has the highest incidence of Neisseria meningitidis. This belt extends from Senegal to Ethiopia.

To tackle these challenges, the WHO today published its first-ever global guidelines for diagnosing, treating, and caring for meningitis.

These guidelines aim to expedite detection, ensure timely treatment, and improve long-term care for those affected by the disease. By consolidating the latest evidence-based recommendations, the guidelines serve as a crucial tool for reducing mortality and disability associated with meningitis.

"Bacterial meningitis kills one in six of the people it strikes, and leaves many others with lasting health challenges," said Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General, in a press release on April 10, 2025.

"Implementing these new guidelines will help save lives, improve long-term care for those affected by meningitis, and strengthen health systems."

The new WHO guidelines provide evidence-based recommendations for the clinical management of children over one month of age, adolescents, and adults with acute community-acquired meningitis.

They address all aspects of clinical care, including diagnosis, antibiotic therapy, adjunctive treatment, supportive care, and management of long-term effects. Given the similarities in clinical presentation, diagnosis, and management approaches across different forms of acute community-acquired meningitis, the guidelines address both bacterial and viral causes.

The guidelines provide recommendations for non-epidemic and epidemic settings and supersede the 2014 WHO guidelines covering meningitis outbreak response.

The guidelines contribute to the broader Defeating Meningitis by 2030 Global Roadmap, adopted by WHO Member States in 2020. This roadmap aims to eliminate bacterial meningitis epidemics, reduce cases of vaccine-preventable bacterial meningitis by 50%, and reduce deaths by 70%.

In the United States, five meningococcal vaccines (three quadrivalent and two monovalent) are licensed and available at travel clinics and pharmacies in 2025.

The CDC recommends that international travelers receive vaccines 7–10 days before departure to allow protective antibody levels to develop.