Meningitis is a dangerous infectious disease that affects the membranes of the brain, thereby causing inflammation in them. He is able to appear both independently and as an infection from another hearth.
The disease has 5 different forms, it can be bacterial, viral, fungal. By the nature of the inflammatory process - purulent and serous.
At the slightest suspicion of the development of meningitis, an adult or child should be taken to the hospital as soon as possible, since the disease is treated only in a hospital under the supervision of experienced doctors.
Treatment of meningitis must begin with the discovery of the first signs of the disease, because its consequences are very dangerous for a person regardless of age. Meningitis often affects children, because they have insufficiently developed immunity and imperfect blood-brain barrier, in contrast to adults.
Causes of meningitis
The causative agent of meningococcal infection is the bacterium meningococcus, belonging to the genus Neisseria, which contains 2 kinds of bacteria - meningococci and gonococci. The source of infection is the carrier of the infection, which is transmitted by airborne droplets.
The most pathogenic are group A meningococci, they lead to the development of a severe course of meningococcal infection when infected. In children, the cause of meningitis is mainly enteroviruses, penetrating into the body through food, water, dirty objects. It can develop against the background of chickenpox, measles or rubella.
The disease can be transmitted during childbirth, by airborne droplets, through mucous membranes, dirty water, food, rodents bites and various insects. You can also get infected through a kiss.
Secondary meningitisarise when entering the infection in the brain from other sources of inflammation - furuncle, osteomyelitis, otitis, etc. The majority of men and children under the age of 10 are susceptible to this infection.
Symptoms of meningitis
This is a very dangerous disease, which is transmitted by airborne droplets, which increases the risk of catching this ailment. In this regard, it is important to know the first symptoms of meningitis, and also how it manifests itself in children and adults. In time, detected meningitis and its symptoms will help in a timely manner to seek medical help, which will minimize possible complications.
The duration of the incubation period for meningitis depends on the main pathogen, in the case of meningococcal infection it is 5-6 days, in some cases, the period increases to 10 days.
Symptoms of bacterial form usually occur suddenly. Symptoms in a viral type can appear suddenly or gradually over a period of several days.
The most common first signs of meningitis in adults:
- severe and persistent headache;
- high body temperature;
- pain in muscles and joints;
- stiff neck muscles - difficulty or impossible bending of the head;
- shortness of breath, frequent pulse, cyanotic nasolabial triangle;
- increased sensitivity to light and sound;
- nausea and vomiting, general weakness, decreased appetite.
Meningeal syndrome is expressedsymptoms of Kernig and Brudzinsky.
- Kernig Symptom(the inability to unbend the leg bent in the hip and knee joints), soreness with pressure on the eyeballs.
- Symptom of Brudzinsky(when trying to tilt the head forward in the prone position, the legs bend at the knees, when pressing on the pubis the legs bend at the knee joints).
Patients lie on their sides, the head is strongly thrown back, hands are pressed to the chest, and the legs are bent at the knees and brought to the stomach ("pose of the dog"). Meningitis and meningococcal septicemia can not always be determined immediately, since the symptoms are very similar to influenza. It is important to understand that the disease can be accompanied by other symptoms, which can complicate the independent diagnosis.
Symptoms of meningitis in children
To suspect a child's meningitis is not easy, because he can not complain about the symptoms that worry him.
In a small child, a sign of meningitis can be high fever, increased excitability, in which the baby is hard to calm, a decrease in appetite, a rash, vomiting and a piercing cry. The tension of the back muscles and limbs can be observed. In addition, children can cry when they are picked up.
Parents should necessarily call a doctor if they found the above signs.
Treatment of meningitis
When meningitis treatment in children and adults should be comprehensive and conducted in the hospital. To clarify the diagnosis, as well as identify the causative agent of meningitis, spinal puncture is performed.
Treatment measures for meningococcal infection include etiotropic, pathogenetic and symptomatic therapy.
- The basis of treatment of meningitis liesantibiotic therapy. The drug is given taking into account the causative agent of the disease, it is administered intravenously. The use of drugs will be carried out at least a week after the person normalizes the temperature. For the destruction of meningococcus antibiotics of a group of penicillins or their semisynthetic analogues (amoxicillin) are most often used.
- Anti-inflammatory and antihistamines are prescribed to alleviate the symptoms of the disease, reduce the risk of complications, including an allergic reaction to an antibiotic
- In the case of development of cerebral edemadehydration with diuretics (diuretics). When using diuretics, it should be borne in mind that they contribute to the elution of calcium from the body.
Depending on the clinical formimenitis, the severity of the course of meningococcal infection, the combination of drugs and therapeutic approaches are different. After completion of treatment in hospital, continuation of treatment in outpatient settings is necessary. In case of correct and timely treatment, the likelihood of a lethal outcome is no more than 2%.
Inoculation against meningitis
In most cases, meningococcal vaccine, a vaccine against Haemophilus influenzae type B, triple vaccination against measles, rubella and mumps are used. The duration of the vaccination against meningitis is 3 years, its effectiveness reaches 80%. The vaccine is not given to children under 18 months of age.
Doctor Komarovsky:
Prevention
The main preventive measure today is still vaccination. It is possible to vaccinate at will, it is not mandatory. Nonspecific prevention consists in avoiding contact with adults or children who show signs of a disease.
Meningitis Effects
The consequences will depend on how the disease has progressed in humans.
If it was complicated, then a person may even lose hearing or sight. In addition, some forms of this disease can provoke a disruption in the brain and the complexity of mental activity. Postponed in early childhood, it can cause mental retardation, violation of the primary functions of the brain, hydrocephalus.
If treatment of meningitis is started in a timely manner and the patient is treated with antibiotics, then in 98% of cases the patients are completely cured and no consequences are excruciated. The above complications can occur in 1-2% of people who have suffered this ailment.
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