How do they get infected with meningitis, how is the treatment going? What is this disease, what are the consequences and preventive measures? We will talk about this in this article.
What is meningitis?
Inflammation of the meninges is called the general term - meningitis. Both viruses and bacteria cause meningitis. It is characteristic that viral meningitis is more common and more common, but has a milder course, in contrast to bacterial. Often, enteroviruses, herpevirus and mumps are responsible for viral meningitis.
How are they infected with meningitis of viral origin? Almost always by airborne droplets or by oral-fecal route, that is, in contact with a sick person. It can be hugs and kisses, a conversation or being in the same room with him. However, it should be understood that you will not become infected with meningitis per se, but with a virus. The disease itself may not occur.
How are they infected with meningitis? Who can be a danger to a healthy person? Not only people with meningitis, but also so-called carriers, that is, people who themselves do not get sick, but who have a potentially dangerous virus or bacterium, are dangerous to those around them.
What causes bacterial meningitis? Everything is simple here. Inflammation of the membranes of the brain is caused by various bacteria, most often
hemophilic bacillus and cocci.
Bacterial meningitis is a dangerous and extremely serious disease. At the first signs, it is necessary to immediately deliver the sick person to the hospital. Delaying even a few hours can cost the patient life.
Diagnostics
Infectious meningitis in children can develop rapidly and be accompanied by such a serious condition as meningococcal sepsis - septicemia.
Symptoms of meningitis are:
- severe, sometimes unbearable headache;
- depression of consciousness;
- photophobia;
- increase in body temperature to maximum levels;
- indomitable vomiting, etc.
Meningococcal sepsis can be recognized in the first hours of the development of the disease by characteristic rashes in the form of small red spots (from dots to plaques) against a pale bluish skin. When pressed with a glass rod, the rash does not disappear.
There are also some characteristic symptoms of meningitis, which only a specialist can detect.
Only a doctor can diagnose meningitis. For the correct diagnosis, in addition to special tests to determine pathological reflexes, a number of studies are carried out.
Therapy
How they become infected with meningitis is more or less clear. How is this serious disease treated? Therapy begins even before a clinically confirmed picture of the disease is obtained, since the slightest delay is dangerous. Often, antibiotic therapy begins as an ambulance doctor.
Penicillin-type antibiotics, corticosteroid anti-inflammatory drugs, plasma substitutes, body-supporting drugs are used.
Prevention
Effective prevention of meningitis per se does not exist. Meningitis vaccines do not give a 100% guarantee, since there are a great many causative agents of meningitis .