Meningococcal meningitis: two young people aged 16 and 18 hospitalized in Rennes in serious condition

Two boys aged 16 and 18 have been hospitalized at Rennes University Hospital after contracting meningococcal meningitis, according to BFMTV, confirming a report from Ouest-France . Their condition is considered very serious.

According to our information, at least one of the two young people was present at a party on Saturday. The urgent task for health authorities is now to identify potential contact cases, people who spent at least one hour within one meter of the sick people. They will have to identify people they encountered during the three to four days preceding the onset of symptoms.

Furthermore, one of the two young people currently hospitalized had refused vaccination even though a campaign has been underway since March.

A sharp increase in cases of invasive meningococcal infections has been reported in France since the beginning of the year. An 18-year-old woman died from the disease on Monday, February 3 in Ille-et-Vilaine, and around forty contact cases were subsequently identified.

Invasive meningococcal infections are bacterial infections caused by meningococcus. They can cause meningitis or septicemia. Other clinical forms are also described, such as arthritis or forms with gastrointestinal symptoms. These are very serious infections that can lead to death in 10 to 12% of cases and to sequelae in 20 to 25% of cases.

In 2024, a record number of cases were identified, with a continuing trend towards an increase in 2025. In February 2025, 89 cases were reported as of March 7, 2025 (provisional data), a level well above what was observed for the same period of the year in previous seasons, according to Public Health France. A total of 616 according to the latest provisional report.

Vaccination against meningococcus, first extended in January, will be extended again, as announced by Health Minister Yannick Neuder in a press release on Thursday, April 24.