BACTERIAL MENINGITIS IN BERNALILLO COUNTY, NEW MEXICO: A COMPARISON WITH THREE OTHER AMERICAN POPULATIONS1

Abstract

Fraser, D. W., C. C. Geil and R. A. Feldman (Center for Disease Control. Atlanta, Ga. 30333). Bacterial meningitis in Bernalillo County, New Mexico: a comparison with three other American populations. Am J Epidemiol 100: 29–34, 1974.—In residents of Bernalillo County, New Mexico, 184 cases of bacterial meningitis or 7.3 cases per 100,000 population per year were found to have occurred between 1964 and 1971. A comparison of variables affecting bacterial meningitis risk in this and three other populations from different parts of the United States showed certain consistent patterns. The age distributions of cases of pneumococcal, meningococcal, and H. influenzae meningitis were similar in the four populations. The incidence rates of meningococcal and pneumococcal meningitis varied markedly from one population to another but those of meningitis caused by H. influenzae and other bacteria were quite similar. Because most of the Bernalillo County population were whites, it was possible to examine the association of meningitis risk with average income and education without the confounding variable of race. The results showed that much of the differences in risk of H. influenzae and pneumococcal meningitis between blacks and whites in some populations may be associated with differences in level of education.