Pneumococcal Meningitis and its Causes

The main cause of pneumococcal meningitis is attributed to the bacteria called the streptoccus pneumoniae. When these bacteria invaded the blood vessels of a person, they move up in order to infect the meninges. As well all know the meninges functions as a cushion of the brain for physical damage protections. However, these bacteria put poisons to the cerebrospinal fluid or the CSF, which the main reason of the inflammation of the membrane.

The said bacteria responsible for having pneumococcal meningitis can be acquired through excessive alcoholic consumption, ear infection, infection of the heart valve and pneumonia. The other risk factors of this include respiratory infection and spleen removal.

Pneumococcal Meningitis and its Treatments

Like in any kind of meningitis, the patient with pneumococcal meningitis must be treated with antibiotic the soonest possible time. You must take note of the ceftriaxone since it is one of the most recommended antibiotics for this kind of disease. If this does not work to the patient at all, there might be a need for vancomycin as well as rifampin. Aside from that, the systemic corticosteroids are also being used for special cases like in children.

When the patient is admitted to the hospital, the doctor must conduct physical examination and tests as soon as possible. One of the most basic tests being done is the spinal puncture, wherein a certain amount of the CSF is being extracted for further laboratory tests.

Pneumococcal Meningitis and After Effects

A high number and percentage of patients with pneumococcal meningitis recover. However, it must be noted that this is one of the most notorious forms of this disease or illness. Aside from that, almost half of the survivors of this type of meningitis were report to have some after effects. These after effects are commonly temporary and not fatal. Rest assured that more complicated after effects conditions will be diagnosed and determined before the patient leaves the hospital. Furthermore, there is a very slim chance or less than 20% that the patient may develop moderate or severe disability.

Pneumococcal Meningitis and Preventive Measures

The good news is that pneumococcal meningitis can be prevented. I think this is one of the most important things that we need to know more than the treatments. For infants, immunization is highly recommended in order to reduce the chances of having this kind of pneumococcal meningitis. There are also some vaccines available already for all ages in order to boost immune system and protect them from this infection.

In a nutshell, the appropriate meningitis treatment varies on the kind of the disease that a patient has. For instance, the medication must be the right one for the bacterial, viral or fungal infection. There are some cases when the other medical condition of the patient must be considered as well. These will all be explained in the section below.

Meningitis Treatment for Bacterial Infection

For bacterial infection, the first and foremost meningitis treatment shall be the empiric antibiotics. This must be administered as soon as possible from the time that the disease attacks. This can also be done before the lumbar puncture procedure. According to the recommendations by many doctors and health professionals in this field, the initial meningitis treatment with ceftriaxone and vancomycin are highly needed. This is because taking those antibiotics at the earliest part of the attack can reduce the fatal risk for up 15% and below. Furthermore, these antibiotics are highly needed as well for elder people and infants since they are the most affected by this kind of bacterial infection.

Meningitis Treatment for Viral Infection

On the other hand, most doctors will actually tell you that there is no single and specific meningitis treatment for viral infection. Well, this is because since the infection is due to a specific virus, the antibiotics will not be that much help. However, most of the patients with this kind of condition recover within seven to 10 days from the attack. This is true if the patient has a good immune system condition. Otherwise, a couple of days hospitalization might be needed as well as to severe cases.

Meningitis Treatment for Fungal Infection

The meningitis treatment for fungal infections usually takes a long time with high dosages of antifungal medicines. For example, high dosages of the Amphotericin B and the flucytosine are being used in order to treat a specific case caused by Cryptococcus fungi. Nevertheless, the treatment is commonly administered using an IV line. Aside from that, this is also being done mostly in the hospital where there are appropriate equipment and personnel to do the treatment. The meningitis treatment for people with weak immune system like those with AIDS, cancer and diabetes, usually takes much longer than the usual.

Meningitis Treatment and Prevention

As what all doctor would say, prevention is still better than having any meningitis treatment. You can do this by having a good personal habit for quality hygiene. You can also prevent this from happening to you by not exposing yourself from those that are infected with this. If the exposure with these people is inevitable, then you must boost your immune system to protect yourself.

Nevertheless, there were some reports made by the scientists and the experts that the bacteria and viruses causing meningitis are not as contagious as those that are with the usual flu. On top of it all, the bacteria are not being spread out just because of simple breathing. In other words, it is not extremely airborne. But you must be reminded that prolonged exposure and direct contact from a carrier may increase the chances of passing the bacteria or virus to you.

Is Meningitis Contagious for All?

One of the most popular concerns of many people is to find out some answers to the question “is meningitis contagious for all?” Well, this is because we need to classify and determine who is most likely to be a victim of this kind of sickness or illness. In most reports and researches made by different experts in this field, the group that is mostly at risk from meningitis are those that are with a young age, specifically newborn babies and infants.

Well, this is because babies and newborn infants are only building their immune system up. Hence, they are more prone from these bacteria and viruses. It is in this light that parents need to make sure that their babies are having the right nutrients and vitamins to give them the appropriate protection. So, is meningitis contagious for all? The direct answer is a no. There is a very low risk if a person is having a perfect condition of immune system.

Is Meningitis Contagious? How?

There are many modes of transmission to pass the virus and bacteria of meningitis. If you want to ask, “is meningitis contagious?,” the answer to that is through respiratory exchange, which are stated already above. Some of these are mostly involving direct contact from a carrier of the virus. However, as reiterated already above, there is a very low chance for a person to receive the bacteria if he or she has a very strong state of immune system.

How Many Days Is Meningitis Contagious?

When you have been exposed from a carrier of the said virus and bacteria, how long will it take for you to be infected or, in other words, how many days is meningitis contagious? According to what is stated in many medical articles, the first few symptoms will not manifest immediately from the time of exposure. This is because it will take around three to four days for the signs to start occurring. Hence, it is highly recommended to take antibiotics and immune system boosters so that the bacteria will be stabilized and will not develop into infection.

Nonetheless, there are common signs of meningitis across ages. Most of these symptoms are actually commonly mistaken as the signs of influenza or normal flu. This is the reason why lots of people are ignoring this illness since they do not know that it is already meningitis, which is potentially fatal. Aside from that, another basic thing that you need to know about these signs of meningitis is that they can occur and develop within several hours and even for few days.

Signs of Meningitis for Newborn Babies

It is very hard to determine if a newborn baby is already having a specific kind of meningitis because they often have normal flu once in a while. However, if your baby is having a high fever together with sensitivity to light and refusing take eat and drink, you must be alarmed already because it is already unusual. Aside from that, other signs of meningitis also include difficulty from waking up as well as changes to mental condition and status. Of course, the baby may also manifest neck stiffness and vomiting or nausea, but these are very common to cases of influenza.

Another unique signs of meningitis for newborn babies are constant crying and inactivity or the acts of sluggishness. On top of it all, one key sign is if the baby has rashes or spots.

Signs of Meningitis for Teenagers and Adults

Both the groups of the teenagers and the adults share the same signs of meningitis. These symptoms include extreme occurrence of severe headache and unusual stiffness of the neck. There were also some reports that most people who had this sickness experience irritations or sensitivity from bright lights, which is a sign of initial or partial photophobia. Well, this is because the infected part of the body is near the brain and at the spinal column, which is the main signal way to send and transmit information from the brain to the senses of the person and vice versa. As a result of this, the person will also manifest mental confusion and sudden changes on his or mental state. Of course, the patient may also experience convulsions and seizures in just few hours from the occurrence of any of the symptoms stated above.

What to Do When These Signs of Meningitis Occur?

The most important thing that you need to do when you have known all of these signs of meningitis has something to do with the initial treatments. These treatments are intended to make the patient survive as well as prevent the infection from spreading. This can be done by letting the patient and the exposed people take some antibiotic medicines. After that, professional consultations are required.

This fungus, which is also known as the cryptococcal disease, is one of the most potentially fatal diseases caused by fungus. According to the experts in this field, this is like an encapsulated type of yeast that can actually live both in plants as well as animals. This is also referred as the opportunistic fungus primarily because it attacks a person when its immune system is down or at its lowest.

Cryptococcal Meningitis and its Causes

The cryptococcal meningitis is primarily caused by a fungus called the cryptococcus neoformans. These fungi are commonly found from the soil. While this is very evident anywhere, it only affects people who are with weak condition of immune system. Hence, those people with AIDS, lymphoma and diabetes. However, this is not to say that people with normal and strong condition of immune system are already exempted from its risks. Instead, what I am trying to say is the case of this kind of illness for these kinds of people are rather rare.

Symptoms and Signs of Cryptococcal Meningitis

According to lots of medical journals and publications about cryptococcal meningitis, its signs and symptoms vary depending on the specific case of the patient as well as his or her age. Nevertheless, among the most common signs if a person is having this kind of cryptococcal meningitis include having a high fever, hallucinations together with headache, change in the mental status or condition as well as nausea and vomiting. There were some cases reported that a person with this condition can also manifest sensitivity to bright lights as well as stiffness of the neck.

Aside from that, when the patient was initially checked up, among the common signs includes the fast rate of the beat of the heart. When this happens, the immediate thing to do is the lumbar puncture, which will be discussed in the section below.

Cryptococcal Meningitis and Appropriate Treatments or Medications

As stated above, among the first things that must be done when a person has been diagnosed to possible having a cryptococcal meningitis is the lumbar puncture. This is also called as the spinal tap since a few amount of CSF or the cerebrospinal fluid is being collected for laboratory testing. On top of that, blood culture can also be done as well as chest x-ray, cell count and CT scan for more thorough studies and testing. These are necessary in order to specifically determine the exact condition of the disease.

Complications of Cryptococcal Meningitis

When there is no appropriate medication made to cure this cryptococcal meningitis, some complications will most probably occur. Some of these complications include brain damage, hair loss and thinning as well as hydrocephalus and seizures. You must also know that there are some treatments that you must be wary. This is because, for instance, excessive usage of Amphotericin B may cause damage of the kidney.