At least seven people in Florida have died from a meningococcal disease.
The lining of the brain and spine can be affected by the disease.
It is spread by very close contact. The most common symptoms are headaches.
There has been an outbreak of meningococcal disease in Florida.
Gay and bisexual men in the US have had one of the worst epidemics of meningococcal disease. People in Florida who may be at risk of contracting a disease are being urged to get a vaccine.
Men who have sex with men, as well as men who live in or may be traveling to Florida, are recommended to get meningococcal vaccine by the CDC.
The outbreak is "frankly, pretty scary" and that many of the cases are younger men who were healthy, according to SamCrowe, an Epidemiologist with the CDC. HIV is a known risk factor for meningococcal disease. He said that the people were hospitalized and underwent a lot of treatment.
The agency wants to get the word out to all men who have sex with men in Florida that they need to get the MenACWY vaccine.
David Harvey is the head of the National Coalition of STD Directors.
The AIDS healthcare foundation is one of the clinics in South Florida that can help people get vaccines for free.
He said that the response should be community education, increasing awareness, and making sure that people are getting vaccinations.
Gay and bisexual men who have sex with men accounted for six of the deaths and 24 of the infections so far, according to the CDC.
Meningococcal is not a sexually transmitted disease like monkeypox. About 1 in 10 people have the same type ofbacteria as it. It can be passed on if you are in close contact with someone who has the disease.
The Florida Department of Health said in April that people don't catch meningococcal disease through casual contact or breathing air where someone has been. It requires close contact over a period of time or direct contact.
The illness has been hitting certain demographic groups in Florida but not others.
The two patients who are not men who have sex with men actually don't have direct links with any of the other cases as there can be multiple rounds of transmission without any detection.
Meningococcal disease can be fatal in as little as 24 hours.
The best medical public health intervention is to prevent it through vaccination.
Meningococcal can cause diseases in the brain and spine, and it can also enter the bloodstream. People are killed by the bacteria.
The most common early symptoms are a high temperature, headaches, and a stiff neck.
The CDC said that symptoms can first appear as a flu-like illness.
Nausea, vomiting, and a dark purple rash are some of the signs to look out for.
If it has been more than five years since you last received a meningococcal vaccine, you may need a booster.
Doctors are able to prescribe antibiotics because the disease is caused by a bacterium. Up to 15 in 100 people with meningococcal disease die, and up to 1 in 5 survivors develop long-term disabilities, such as brain damage. Some people may need multiple limbs to be removed due to the illness.
The CDC is trying to identify people who may have been exposed in the outbreak and prescribe antibiotics as a preventive measure. Fourteen of the 26 cases so far have been in Hispanic individuals, and the agency is trying to communicate in Spanish.
"Because of the outbreak in Florida, and the number of Pride events being held across the state in coming weeks, it's important that gay and bisexual men who live in Florida get vaccinations, and those traveling to Florida talk to their healthcare provider about getting a MenACWY vaccine," Dr
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