Meningitis
hideMeningitis is inflammation of the protective membranes covering the brain and spinal cord, known collectively as the meninges. The inflammation may be caused by infection with viruses, bacteria, or other microorganisms, and less commonly by certain drugs. Meningitis can be life-threatening because of the inflammation's proximity to the brain and spinal cord; therefore the condition is classified as a medical emergency.
The most common symptoms of meningitis are headache and neck stiffness associated with fever, confusion or altered consciousness, vomiting, and an inability to tolerate light (photophobia) or loud noises (phonophobia). Sometimes, especially in small children, only nonspecific symptoms may be present, such as irritability and drowsiness. If a rash is present, it may indicate a particular cause of meningitis; for instance, meningitis caused by meningococcal bacteria may be accompanied by a characteristic rash.
A lumbar puncture may be used to diagnose or exclude meningitis. This involves inserting a needle into the spinal canal to extract a sample of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), the fluid that envelops the brain and spinal cord. The CSF is then examined in a medical laboratory. The usual treatment for meningitis is the prompt application of antibiotics and sometimes antiviral drugs. In some situations, corticosteroid drugs can also be used to prevent complications from overactive inflammation. Meningitis can lead to serious long-term consequences such as deafness, epilepsy, hydrocephalus and cognitive deficits, especially if not treated quickly. Some forms of meningitis (such as those associated with meningococci, Haemophilus influenzae type B, pneumococci or mumps virus infections) may be prevented by immunization.
For more information about Meningitis, read the full article at
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News tagged with meningitis
Cost of child vaccines fall, more kids saved
Nov 20, 2009 |
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(AP) -- Babies squirmed and wailed as needles plunged into their chubby thighs at a public health clinic on the outskirts of Hanoi on Friday. Like little ones everywhere, the reaction to the sting was never pretty.
FDA reviews update to Pfizer vaccine for kids
Medicine & Health / Medications
Nov 16, 2009 |
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(AP) -- Federal health officials on Monday questioned whether to approve an updated version of Pfizer's best-selling anti-infection vaccine for children, despite company studies that failed to meet certain goals.
Progress made on group B streptococcus vaccine
Oct 30, 2009 |
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Scientists supported by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health, have completed a Phase II clinical study that indicates a vaccine to prevent Group B Streptococcus ...
Vaccine expert advises: Immunization should be given as early in life as possible
Medicine & Health / Medications
Sep 15, 2009 |
2.3 / 5 (3) |
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Parents should not be worried, that early vaccination would overwhelm their babies. Recent data show, that the immune system of newborns is able to respond to a world full of antigens already at birth. Therefore, vaccines ...
Breast cancer drug shows promise against serious infections
Jul 20, 2009 |
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An FDA-approved drug used for preventing recurrence of breast cancer shows promise in fighting life-threatening fungal infections common in immune-compromised patients, such as infants born prematurely and patients with cancer. ...
Predicting fatal fungal infections
Medicine & Health / HIV & AIDS
Jun 16, 2009 |
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In a study published in The Journal of Infectious Diseases, researchers from Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University have identified cells in blood that predict which HIV-positive indivi ...
Lessons from the vaccine-autism wars
May 27, 2009 |
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Researchers long ago rejected the theory that vaccines cause autism, yet many parents don't believe them. Can scientists bridge the gap between evidence and doubt?
Breakthrough in the treatment of bacterial meningitis
May 13, 2009 |
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It can take just hours after the symptoms appear for someone to die from bacterial meningitis. Now, after years of research, experts at The University of Nottingham have finally discovered how the deadly meningococcal bacteria ...
Investigators searching for links among meningitis victims
Apr 25, 2009 |
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"Patient Zero," the first victim to come down with the rare strain of meningitis that has killed four and infected eight others in South Florida since December, was a South Florida resident who was sickened in December but ...
Experts baffled by deadly outbreak of meningitis
Apr 24, 2009 |
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Local, state and national health experts are baffled as to how a rare and deadly strain of meningitis killed four people and infected eight others in South Florida since December, an unprecedented outbreak in the United States.
Meningitis bacteria dress up as human cells to evade our immune system
Feb 18, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- The way in which bacteria that cause bacterial meningitis mimic human cells to evade the body's innate immune system has been revealed by researchers at the University of Oxford and Imperial ...
Pediatric vaccine effectively prevents pneumococcal meningitis
Jan 14, 2009 |
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A standard pediatric vaccine used to prevent several common types of life-threatening infections also effectively reduced the rates of another disease, pneumococcal meningitis, in children and adults, according to a multi-center ...
Most babies with uncomplicated febrile seizures can avoid spinal tap
Jan 06, 2009 |
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When babies develop a fever high enough or abrupt enough to cause a seizure, frightened parents often rush them to the emergency room, where their workup frequently includes a lumbar puncture (spinal tap) to rule out bacterial ...
Fractional dose of scarce meningitis vaccine may be effective in outbreak control
Dec 05, 2008 |
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One fifth of the standard dose of a commonly used meningitis vaccine may be as effective as using the full dose. This new finding should allow scarce vaccine resources to be stretched further, especially during epidemics ...
Fractional dose of scarce meningitis vaccine may be effective in outbreak control
Dec 02, 2008 |
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A partial dose of a commonly used vaccine against meningitis may be as effective as a full dose, according to new research published December 2 in the open-access journal PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases. Fractional dosing ...
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