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Meningitis

Meningitis is an infection of the fluid (cerebrospinal fluid, or CSF) and tissues (meninges) that surround the brain and spinal cord.

Meningitis is usually caused by a virus or by bacteria. It can also develop as a complication of another illness, such as a sinus or ear infection, or an injury. Fungus is a common cause of meningitis in people with impaired immune systems (such as those with AIDS). In rare cases, meningitis may be caused by a parasite or an unexpected reaction to a medication. Certain organisms in a woman's birth canal can be passed on to her baby during the birth process and cause meningitis in the baby.

Meningitis can be mild, or it can be severe and life-threatening. Bacterial meningitis is usually a more serious condition than viral meningitis.

Treatment depends on the cause of the infection and the severity of the illness. Call your health professional immediately, especially after a viral illness, if the following symptoms develop:

A severe headache with stiff neck, fever, nausea, and vomiting.
Severe sensitivity to light (photophobia).
Extreme sleepiness.
Confusion, restlessness, or irritability.
Changes in vision.
A bulging soft spot (fontanelle) on a baby's head when the baby is not crying.
Seizures.

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Sorry about the gloom, but I thought it appropriate to be informative about something that most people just would not really know about normally.

Ciao

Dave
 

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Posted by Bobby Henderson (Member # 840) on 04-17-2004, 12:28 PM:
 
Dave, you and your friends have my sympathies.

Meningitis is a very scary disease. Years ago, one of my best friends nearly died of bacterial meningitis. There are few experiences in life filled with more agony than being afflicted with meningitis. My friend, Randy, said the headaches were so bad that even the slightest sounds racked his body with pain. I'm not sure how many people who survive are hit with lasting effects of this disease. Randy has dealt with chronic migraine headaches and episodes of fatigue ever since. He thinks the doctors screwed up when doing a spinal tap on him to diagnose the disease.
 

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Posted by Leo Enticknap (Member # 534) on 04-17-2004, 12:32 PM:
 

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Randy has dealt with chronic migraine headaches and episodes of fatigue ever since. He thinks the doctors screwed up when doing a spinal tap on him to diagnose the disease.

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I had a lumbar puncture, which I think is the same thing as a spinal tap: they stick a needle into your spinal cord and extract some fluid from it. This was when I was treated for Guillain-Barré syndrome in 1993. I was told by the doctor that afterwards, I should lie flat on my back for six hours without trying to sit up under any circumstances. I was warned that if I ignored this instruction, I might suffer chronic headaches and fatigue for the rest of my life. As you can imagine, that was a pretty long and boring afternoon, helped only by a nice nurse who found a portable radio and tuned it to the test match. It was Michael Atherton's first Ashes test as England captain, in which the Aussies totally and utterly mullahed us. Most of the wickets seemed to fall while I was lying on that bed!

As for meningitis, it's not just babies that are at risk, and it can be spread by airborne infection (though this doesn't happen very often, as some urban legends would have you believe).

In my final year as an undergraduate (1994-95) I was a hall warden (translation: final year student who gets a little bit off his rent in university accommodation in exchange for acting as a point of contact for confused/living at home for the first time first years, and for trying to calm the rugby team down if they've had a little too much to drink) when there was a meningitis outbreak. By the time it was over one student died (I'd met her once or twice, but didn't know her at all well) and another almost did. The three weeks or so that the outbreak was considered 'live' was not nice: There'd be several kids each evening coming to me asking if they were likely to catch it; what steps they could take to avoid it (not an awful lot) and so on and so forth. What was particularly nasty was that I was told of the death at a wardens' briefing shortly afterwards, but instructed not to pass the information on. So whenever anyone asked me I had to reply with 'sorry, I'm not allowed to say anything'. This, of course, was interpreted (correctly) as meaning that she'd died, and urban legends went round the campus like mad. At one point, up to 10 individuals were supposed to be dead, including someone I'd had a beer with some 30 minutes before hearing of his alleged demise the previous day.

With hindsight (very useful, I know), I think the university authorities handled it pretty badly, allowing a lot of unnecessary fear to take hold among a group of 18 year-olds and their parents. They obviously didn't really know how to handle the situation themselves. Most universities and colleges are now a lot better on meningitis prevention, and hand out awareness leaflets to new students each September. But as Dave says and without turning into a complete hypochondriac, keep an eye out for the symptoms.
 

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Posted by John Pytlak (Member # 331) on 04-17-2004, 08:43 PM:
 
Sorry sorry to hear of this tragic young death. You are correct that early diagnosis and treatment can be a lifesaver. We've had a few youngsters die of meningitis in our area recently too.
 

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Posted by Scott Balko (Member # 438) on 04-17-2004, 10:15 PM:
 
My youngest son had it when he was just a month old. Indeed, very, VERY scary!!! It's absolutely heart wrenching to watch such a little one suffer. And to think that at such an young age he couldn't communicate the intense pain he had to be experiencing. I still look at him now (age 7) and thank Almighty God that I'm still blessed with him.

My prayers and sympathies go out to them.
 

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Posted by Randy Stankey (Member # 64) on 04-17-2004, 11:35 PM:
 
With warning hand I mark Time's rapid flight,
From Life's glad morning to its solemn night;
Yet, through the dear Lord's love, I also show
There's light above me by the shade I throw.

- John Greenleaf Whittier,
an inscription on a sun dial for the Rev. Henry T. Bowditch
 

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Posted by Ken Layton (Member # 133) on 04-17-2004, 11:39 PM:
 
Here in western Washington state, we have had several well publicized cases that spread thru the school systems.
 

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Posted by Jeremy Fuentes (Member # 2135) on 04-18-2004, 12:39 AM:
 
Me and my family send our deepest sympathies.
 

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Posted by John T. Hendrickson, Jr (Member # 849) on 04-18-2004, 06:34 PM:
 
This post caught my eye. Our neighbor's five year old daughter died of bacterial meningitis on Easter Sunday. Sudden, tragic, and a total shock to everyone. Hard to comprehend.
 

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Posted by Josh Jones (Member # 447) on 04-19-2004, 04:54 PM:
 
Very sorry to hear this.

I had a friend I ran with who lost a sister to this while in college. Very sudden.

Josh
 

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