CDC Issues Vaccination Warning for Travelers to Saudi Arabia

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recently issued a health alert and a travel alert about meningococcal disease, an infection that can lead to death in just hours, for people going to Saudi Arabia. On May 20, the federal health agency issued the alert ostensibly for people heading to Mecca, Saudi Arabia, for the Hajj or Umrah religious events in June. It said that people going to the country should receive a vaccine for meningococcal disease before going. The agency said that 10 recent cases of meningococcal disease—a bacterial infection—in the United States and Europe were linked to Saudi Arabia travel and two were close contacts. Two cases were in children under the age of 18, four cases were in adults aged 18 to 44, four were in adults aged 45 to 64, and two were aged 65 years or older, according to the CDC, adding that most of the cases were among those who are unvaccinated for the disease....