Epidemiology of invasive Haemophilus influenzae type b infections in Geneva, Switzerland, 1976 to 1989

We report a retrospective study of invasive Haemophilus influenzae type b (Hib) diseases in Geneva from 1976 to 1989. Among the 183 children who fulfilled the case definition, 6 (3.3%) presented with more than one site of infection. The overall incidence rate among children younger than 5 years of age was 60.2/100,000 but it was 92.1/100,000 in 1989. Forty-one percent of patients had meningitis, 37% had epiglottis and 22% had other forms of Hib infections. Fifty-four percent of cases occurred in children younger than 2 years of age. Invasive Hib infections were found more often in boys than in girls (1.6/1). From 1984, 21% of all Hib were beta-lactamase-producing strains. During the study period 2 children (1.1%) died from epiglottitis and 12 children with meningitis (15.8%) developed serious neurologic deficits. These data suggest that administration of a conjugate vaccine against Hib to all infants living in Geneva is justified.