Last June, the scientific societies closest to vaccination in our country, positioned themselves before the decision of the Spanish Agency of Medicines (AEMPS), of limit the use of the vaccine against meningococcal disease by serogroup B to the hospital setting.
This vaccine may be the best preventive measure against meningococcal infection invading serogroup B, a rare but devastating disease that is accompanied by a uniform lethality of 10% and between 10% and 30% of permanent sequelae. Without a doubt, it is a crucial advance in the fight against this disease. 'Leaving this vaccine only for hospital use, especially when its indications for the population have not yet been established, constitutes an exercise of incongruity that can result in confusion between health professionals and the citizens themselves.'.
The application for hospital use, which means that it cannot be freely dispensed in community pharmacies, is a very exceptional circumstance and only intended for certain vaccines. It should not be the case of the only vaccine available against meningococcus B
The Associations of Pediatrics, Vaccination and Preventive Medicine, are surprised that Spain is going to be the only European country to declare this vaccine for hospital use, and ignore the professional criteria that have led to this decision
