According to some Indian Studies conducted by NCBI, meningitis is reported as one of the leading causes of deaths among children below five years of age accounting together to nearly 22.0% deaths. Hospital-based data reports that nearly 40–50% of meningitis result from Hib infection.
The term meninges accurately mean “membrane”. These are the layers that surround the brain and spinal cord. This includes the most outer dura mater (inner to the skull), middle arachnoid mater, and innermost pia mater. The fluid that flows between these meninges is called the Cerebrospinal fluid.
Meningitis is the inflammation of meninges. This may most commonly be due to viral or bacterial infection.
In separate sections, we have already looked into the types and causes of meningitis, today we will discuss the signs and symptoms of meningitis pertaining to their types.
Symptoms may appear immediately within seven days and include:
Infants and children with Bacterial meningitis present as:
Apart from fungal, bacterial, and viral symptoms, signs and symptoms vary with age and sex too.
Adult Meningitis:
Round glass test:
A typical rash is produced by bacterial meningitis due to the involvement of capillaries and resultant blood leaks. It gets severe as the infection spreads. It may spread rapidly and is identified by pressing the side of a glass firmly on the rash. If the rash fades it does not represent a meningeal rash, otherwise, it is.
Prevention:
Prophylactic meningococcal conjugate vaccines are existing for bacterial meningitis. It may have a series of side effects at the time of vaccination but it provides a more widespread and longer protection against meningitis. This vaccine is recommended for a risk population.
Complications – if untreated the patient may present with certain severe manifestations presented as:
I hope the above write-up must have added your knowledge base about the symptoms and clinical presentation of different types of meningitis. Awareness is yet another form of presentation. Stay aware!!
Dr. Amit Shrivastava | Senior Consultant – Neurology | Dharamshila Narayana Superspeciality Hospital, Delhi
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