**2. Meningococcal infection biosurveillance and Public Health response and control in Ukraine**

The purpose of epidemiological surveillance of meningococcal infection (MI) is to prevent deaths and reduce disease morbidity risk groups. A retrospective epidemiological analysis of MI must include data monitoring morbidity risk groups (e.g., children aged of 0–1 and 1–4 years old), and other young people as which came as socio-organized as group indicators (i.e., including school, kindergartens, orphanages, vocational colleges, university, among others). Equally important is the analysis of total mortality and mortality by risk groups and their dynamics. In addition, data are analyzed from microbiological monitoring of "indicator groups." Moreover, there is a national serological monitoring of MI pathogens.

In epidemic foci of MI, patients with IMD are hospitalized and isolated while and a 10 days' medical observation of contact-persons is conducted (thermometry and examination of the skin and mucous membranes of the nasopharynx). Bacteriological tests are done twice among organized groups and once at home (i.e., family contact) within epidemic foci. Surveillance of other purulent meningitis is carried out as for meningococcal infection.

In Ukraine, since the 1920s, MI cases introduced are registered as well as *Haemophilus influenzae* type B Hib-meningitis cases are registered since 2010. From 2012, pneumococcal meningitis (PM) and all other bacterial meningitis are also registered. Vaccination against Hib-infection was included in the routine immunization program in 2006 by the Ministry of Health, while it is considering now to introduce a national vaccination campaigns against meningococcal and pneumococcal disease. As of 2013, an estimated of 68.9% of Ukrainians lives in urban areas including the 68.2% of the population over 45 years old [8].

Since 2007, there is a Central Reference Laboratory for invasive bacterial diseases (IBD) characterizing and supervising the dynamic of IBD pathogens in order to forecast and reduce (preventive measures) the incidence of IBD. The State institution "Ukrainian Centre for Disease Control and monitoring of the Ministry of Health of Ukraine" is a reference as part of the IBD-laboratory WHO and UNICEF networks. A sentinel surveillance system included all patients younger than 5 years clinically suspected of meningitis and hospitalized as hospital in-patient of either the department of infectious disease or intensive care unit.
