Meningitis Health Channel

	Feature Article Illustrations for this article Click on an image below to enlarge Haemophilus influenza organism Brudzinski's sign of meningitis Show all 6 photos Meningitis Definition Meningitis is a bacterial or non-bacterial infection that causes inflammation of the membranes covering the brain and spinal cord. Causes, incidence, and risk factors The most common causes of meningitis are viral infections that usually get better without treatment. However, bacterial meningitis infections are extremely serious, and may result in death or brain damage even if treated. Meningitis is also caused by: Chemical irritation Drug allergies Fungi Tumors Types include: Aseptic meningitis Carcinomatous meningitis (meningitis due to cancer) Cryptococcal meningitis Gram negative meningitis H. influenza meningitis Meningococcal meningitis Pneumococcal meningitis Staphylococcal meningitis Syphilitic aseptic meningitis Tuberculous meningitis Acute bacterial meningitis is a true medical emergency, and requires immediate treatment in a hospital. Viral meningitis is milder and occurs more often than bacterial meningitis. It usually develops in the late summer and early fall, and often affects children and adults under age 30. Most infections occur in children under the age of 5. Most viral meningitis is associated with enteroviruses, which are viruses that commonly cause intestinal illness. Many other types of viruses can also cause meningitis. For example, viral meningitis can be caused by herpes viruses, the same virus that can cause cold sores and genital herpes (although people with recurrent cold sores or genital herpes are not at a greater risk of developing herpes meningitis). Recently, West Nile virus, spread by mosquito bites, has become a cause of viral meningitis in most of the United States. In addition to causing viral meningitis, West Nile virus may cause encephalitis in some patients and a polio-like syndrome in others. Symptoms Fever and chills Mental status changes Nausea and vomiting Sensitivity to light (photophobia) Severe headache Stiff neck (meningismus) Other symptoms that can occur with this disease: Agitation Bulging fontanelles Decreased consciousness Opisthotonos Poor feeding or irritability in children Rapid breathing Meningitis is an important cause of fever in newborn children. Signs and tests Chest x-ray Head CT scan Gram-stain and culture of CSF (cerebral spinal fluid) Lumbar puncture with CSF glucose measurement and CSF cell count Treatment Doctors prescribe antibiotics for bacterial meningitis; the type will vary depending on the infecting organism. Antibiotics are not effective in viral meningitis. Continue reading this article

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Meningitis - H. influenzae (2 images) (Doctor-Reviewed information)
Haemophilus influenzae meningitis is an infection of the membranes covering the brain and spinal cord (meninges) caused by H. influenzae bacteria. Reviewer: Hilary M. Babcock, M.D., Medical Director of Occupational Infection Control, Barnes-Jewish and St. Louis Children's Hospitals; Instructor of Medicine, Infectious Disease Division, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.Date: 09/06/2006

Meningitis - cryptococcal (1 image) (Doctor-Reviewed information)
Cryptococcal meningitis is an infection of the meninges (the membranes covering the brain and spinal cord), caused by the fungus Cryptococcus neoformans. Reviewer: Hilary M. Babcock, M.D., Medical Director of Occupational Infection Control, Barnes-Jewish and St. Louis Children's Hospitals; Instructor of Medicine, Infectious Disease Division, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.Date: 09/06/2006

Meningitis - meningococcal (1 image) (Doctor-Reviewed information)
Meningococcal meningitis is an infection that causes inflammation of the membranes covering the brain and spinal cord. Reviewer: Hilary M. Babcock, M.D., Medical Director of Occupational Infection Control, Barnes-Jewish and St. Louis Children's Hospitals; Instructor of Medicine, Infectious Disease Division, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.Date: 08/15/2006

Meningitis - pneumococcal (2 images) (Doctor-Reviewed information)
Pneumococcal meningitis is an inflammation or infection of the membranes covering the brain and spinal cord caused by Streptococcus pneumoniae (also called pneumococcus. Reviewer: Hilary M. Babcock, M.D., Medical Director of Occupational Infection Control, Barnes-Jewish and St. Louis Children's Hospitals; Instructor of Medicine, Infectious Disease Division, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.Date: 08/15/2006

Meningitis - staphylococcal (1 image) (Doctor-Reviewed information)
Staphylococcal meningitis is an infection of the membranes covering the brain and spinal cord (meninges), caused by Staphylococcus bacteria. Reviewer: Hilary M. Babcock, M.D., Medical Director of Occupational Infection Control, Barnes-Jewish and St. Louis Children's Hospitals; Instructor of Medicine, Infectious Disease Division, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.Date: 09/06/2006

Aseptic meningitis (1 image) (Doctor-Reviewed information)
Aseptic meningitis is an illness characterized by headache, fever, and inflammation of the lining of the brain (meninges. Although it looks like bacterial meningitis, bacteria do not grow in cultures of the cerebrospinal fluid (fluid around the brain and spinal cord. Reviewer: Hilary M. Babcock, M.D., Medical Director of Occupational Infection Control, Barnes-Jewish and St. Louis Children's Hospitals; Instructor of Medicine, Infectious Disease Division, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.Date: 09/06/2006

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