Serotypes and Serogroups implicated in Bacterial meningitis across Ghana

Background Bacterial meningitis is a dangerous infection that can kill children and adults alike. An estimated 1.2 million instances of bacterial meningitis are anticipated to occur globally each year, despite the discovery of polysaccharide and conjugate vaccines in recent years [[1][1]]. The study aimed to find out which bacteria isolates are linked to meningitis and to compare the culture method to the rT-PCR method. Method This study examined data on bacterial meningitis from the Ghana Health Service’s Public Health Division from 2015 to 2019. Patients’ information was collected from case-based forms held at the Tamale Public Health and Reference Laboratory. The data from the case-based forms was transcribed into a pre-designed Microsoft Excel template. For analysis, the data was cleaned and loaded into Minitab version 18. Results There were 2,446 CSM cases documented in all, 34.4 percent were confirmed. Males (52.7%) were more suspected than females (47.3%). Age group 15-44 were affected most (37.5%). The predominant pathogens were Neisseria meningitidis (W135) and Streptococcus pneumoniae (St.1) with NMX, St.14, St.19, and St. 12F/12A/12b as new emerging strains. Notwithstanding that, low NPV (72.6%), NLR (0.69), and sensitivity (31.8%) of culture method for detected pathogens of bacterial meningitis were found to produce a statistically significant false negatives compared to the gold standard (rT-PCR). Conclusion Emergence of new strains of bacterial meningitis and the false negative results chained out by the culture method is alarming. ### Competing Interest Statement The authors have declared no competing interest. ### Funding Statement Because the research was supported entirely by the study's authors, there were no funds from any external or internal sources. The study's resources were gathered from the research team for the study's aims ### Author Declarations I confirm all relevant ethical guidelines have been followed, and any necessary IRB and/or ethics committee approvals have been obtained. Yes The details of the IRB/oversight body that provided approval or exemption for the research described are given below: Committee on Human Research and Publication Ethics (CHRPE) from the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology. I confirm that all necessary patient/participant consent has been obtained and the appropriate institutional forms have been archived, and that any patient/participant/sample identifiers included were not known to anyone (e.g., hospital staff, patients or participants themselves) outside the research group so cannot be used to identify individuals. Yes I understand that all clinical trials and any other prospective interventional studies must be registered with an ICMJE-approved registry, such as ClinicalTrials.gov. I confirm that any such study reported in the manuscript has been registered and the trial registration ID is provided (note: if posting a prospective study registered retrospectively, please provide a statement in the trial ID field explaining why the study was not registered in advance). Yes I have followed all appropriate research reporting guidelines and uploaded the relevant EQUATOR Network research reporting checklist(s) and other pertinent material as supplementary files, if applicable. Yes Data collected for this study was obtained from the Tamale Public Health and Reference Laboratory. The data is not open to the public and hence permission is required to have access to it. [1]: #ref-1