What is Meningitis – Causes, Symptoms, and Treatment

Severe headaches over a prolonged period can indicate meningitis. However, you must also consider other symptoms to confirm the condition. Once sure, you should immediately visit the doctor for the necessary diagnosis and treatment. Keep reading to know the symptoms, causes, diagnosis, treatments and precautionary measures for this disease.

There are several protective membranes surrounding the brain and spinal cord, which are known as meninges. If there is an inflammation in these meninges because of any infection, it is referred to as meningitis. Primarily, infection with different pathogens leads to the development of this condition.

The different types of meningitis that can develop are as follows:

• Viral meningitis: This occurs due to infection by several viruses that fall in the category of Enterovirus, such as coxsackievirus A, coxsackievirus B, and echoviruses. This is the most common type of meningitis and often resolves itself without treatment.
• Bacterial meningitis: This type of meningitis develops due to some common bacteria such as Streptococcus pneumonia, Staphylococcus aureus, Neisseria meningitides, and Listeria monocytogenes. The specific meningitis is named accordingly.
• Fungal meningitis: It is a rare type occurring due to fungi such as Blastomyces, Cryptococcus, Histoplasma, and Coccidioides. Generally, people who do not have strong immunity tend to suffer from this type.
• Parasitic meningitis: This is another rare type of meningitis. It mainly develops due to parasites like Baylisascaris procyonis, Angiostrongylus cantonensis, and Gnathostoma spinigerum. This is not contagious; however, the parasite can enter your body via faeces, dirt, or food such as raw fish, snails, and poultry.
• Chronic meningitis: This can develop due to any of the reasons like cancer, fungi, and so on. These are so named as they can last for several months to years s.
• Non-infectious meningitis: This type of meningitis is not caused due to pathogens. Instead, they tend to develop owing to severe medical conditions like cancer, head injury, brain surgery, and so on.
• Acute meningitis: This meningitis type is quite severe, and the symptoms tend to appear quite suddenly.
• Primary Amoebic Meningitis (PAM): This is a rare type of meningitis mainly caused by the free-living microscopic amoeba Naegleria fowleri.
• Drug-Induced Aseptic Meningitis (DIAM): There are several NSAIDs that lead to the development of this type of meningitis.

There are several common symptoms that you can look for to detect if you are suffering from any of these types of meningitis.

Below are some of the signs of meningitis that are quite prominently noticeable:

• Frequent headaches
• Extreme sensitivity to light
• Constant sleepiness
• Decrease in appetite
• Feeling lethargic
• Sudden seizures
• High fever
• Change in mental state
• Dealing with a stiff neck
• Feeling nauseated
• Vomiting
• Constant chills
• Bruises on skin
• Feeling confused or disoriented
• Lack of thirst

Additionally, you must also be aware of the causes of meningitis so that you can take the necessary steps to avoid this disease.

Meningitis is mainly caused due to the spread of bacteria, viruses and fungi through the bloodstream or the nervous system. Once it reaches the brain or spinal cord, it stays in the fluids surrounding these body parts and results in the inflammation of the meninges. There they start advancing into more complicated stages of the infection. However, a non-infectious type of meningitis can occur simply due to physical injury.

Also, there are certain risk factors associated with meningitis that can lead to the rapid advancement of this disease.

The risk factors involved in meningitis are as follows:

• Immune deficiency: People with weak immunity are more prone to meningitis than the ones with stronger immune systems.
• Pregnancy: Pregnant women are at a higher risk of getting this disease, and it might affect the unborn child as well.
• Community living: People living in close quarters are more prone to this disease as it can spread rapidly if it is of the infectious type.
• Age: People from all age groups are equally prone to the development of this condition.
• Contact with animals: People working with animals on farms have higher chances of developing this condition.
• Skipping vaccinations: People who haven’t completed their vaccination schedules are at a higher risk of developing meningitis.

So, it becomes essential to approach a doctor for a proper diagnosis as soon as you start noticing the symptoms.

Doctors generally suggest the following methods of diagnosis to confirm the root cause of meningitis:

• Physical examination: The doctor can look for some of the common symptoms to infer if you are suffering from this disease.
• Lumbar puncture: In this method, the lab technician will take out a small amount of the cerebrospinal fluid and test it for the presence of meningitis-causing pathogens.
• Chest X-ray: Doctors suggest this test to determine if you are suffering from an infection that can be associated with meningitis.
• Complete blood count: This test usually determines if there are high numbers of white blood cells, which can indicate the presence of meningitis-causing pathogens.
• Blood cultures: Pathologists conduct this test to detect the presence of bacteria in the blood that causes this disease.
• CT scan: This technique gives a clear picture of the brain that can indicate the development of intracranial pressure or brain abscess.
• Stool sample: Pathologists can test your stool sample to check the presence of pathogens causing this disease.
• Throat swabs: Technicians often take out throat swabs to check the presence of this infection.

Once confirmed, you must immediately proceed with treatment to avoid any further complications.

Doctors generally suggest treatment based on the cause of this disease. These include:

• Intravenous Medicines: Most of the time, viral meningitis gets cured on its own. However, at times doctors may need to prescribe some intravenous antiviral medicines for treatment.
• Antibiotics and Steroids: If one is diagnosed with a bacterial type of meningitis, it is essential to immediately hospitalise and treat the person. The doctors detect the bacteria that have infected the individual and accordingly suggest some intravenous antibiotics and steroids.
• Antifungal Medicines: Doctors use different antifungal agents to treat the antifungal type of meningitis.

For some types of parasitic meningitis and for chronic stages of meningitis, the treatment procedures are different. In the case of parasitic meningitis, the doctor first detects the parasite in the body and suggests a treatment accordingly, while in chronic meningitis, doctors first detect its root cause before suggesting treatment.

Some common treatment methods for these types of meningitis are discussed under.

• Draining infected sinus or mastoid sections of the ear
• Introducing plenty of body fluids to maintain homeostasis and fluid balance
• Pain medicines to help combat body aches and provide relief from symptoms of fever
• Proper bed rest

However, you can take some necessary precautionary measures to prevent the development of meningitis.

Below are some preventive measures that you can use to curb the development of meningitis:

• Adequate sleep: You must get adequate sleep to prevent the development of this disease.
• Avoid contact with patients: Since some meningitis types are contagious, it is essential to maintain a safe distance from sick people.
• Quit smoking: You should quit smoking as soon as possible, as it can worsen the symptoms of meningitis.
• Wash hands frequently: It is essential to wash your hands often and thoroughly with soap and water.
• Disinfect surfaces: As the pathogens might be present in dirt and dust, you must effectively disinfect frequently touched surfaces.
• Cook food like meat and dairy properly: It is vital to cook dairy products like cheese, as well as meat and fish properly to ensure that there are no pathogens remaining in them.
• Wear masks when necessary: While visiting any under-construction area, it is essential to wear masks to stay safe from fungal infection.
• Avoid contaminated water: As contaminated water may contain meningitis-causing pathogens, you must avoid swimming in it or drinking it.
• Use bug repellent: If you visit any area where there is a high risk of bug bites, you can use a bug repellent to keep yourself safe from pathogens.

Hence, it is essential that you follow the precautionary measures to prevent the development and advancement of this disease. Additionally, you must visit the doctor at the right time to curb this disease in your brain and reduce its complications.

You must see a doctor immediately when you start to notice the symptoms such as vomiting, fever, confusion, severe headache, and stiff neck. Also, you should visit a doctor if you come in close contact with a person who is currently suffering from meningitis.