Any disease is better to prevent than to treat. This also applies to meningitis, which is a deadly disease and can be caused by many bacteria and viruses. Moreover, each of these microbes is able to penetrate the body in different ways.
Who should be especially wary of meningitis?
Any person can get meningitis, it is enough to get into his body a very aggressive microbe that has the ability to penetrate through protective barriers directly to the shell of the brain. Here's who is at risk:
- Children with birth defects of the immune system or infected with HIV.
- Children who, during pregnancy or childbirth, had a formation disorder or developed a disease of the central nervous system ( cerebral palsy, posthypoxic cysts in the brain, intrauterine cytomegalovirus or Epstein-Barr infection).
- Elderly people with impaired blood supply to the brain and a weakened immune system are also at risk for this disease.
- Young people, namely:
- Athletes who constantly receive head injuries
- people who often suffer from diseases of the ear, throat, nose;
- those who underwent plastic surgery on the bones of the skull;
- people who have a constant flow of cerebrospinal fluid from the nose or ear.
All these categories are “favorites” of a disease such as meningitis. Prevention of the disease concerns them in the first place. But in order to prevent the disease with the maximum probability, you need to know why it is developing.
Where does meningitis come from?
The disease can be caused by various microbes: viruses, fungi, protozoa, bacteria, and the association of microbes. The concept of “meningitis virus” does not exist in medicine, since many viruses are potentially capable of causing this pathology.
Viral meningitis can develop as a complication of common infections: acute respiratory viral infections, "childhood diseases" such as measles, mumps, chickenpox, rubella, and herpes infection. It may be primary - when enteroviruses, herpes viruses enter the body.
Bacterial meningitis can be caused by:
- meningococcus, which "flies" in the air, from a patient with meningococcal nasopharyngitis (proceeds as usual ARVI), a carrier of meningococcus or a person who develops a generalized form of infection - meningococcal sepsis or meningoencephalitis;
- pneumococcus, which most often penetrates from the "sick" of the ear, throat, nose, lungs, but can also be entered by airborne droplets;
- hemophilic bacillus, which can be transmitted by airborne droplets;
- other bacteria that most often enter the meninges with otitis media, sinusitis, pneumonia, sepsis; can be brought in with a penetrating wound.
It follows that to prevent a disease such as meningitis, prevention should be versatile:
- taking into account the pathway of the microbe and its properties (non-specific);
- the one that is taking special drugs - vaccines (specific).
Everyone should observe the first type of prophylaxis, in particular its rules it is important to instill in children. The second type is agreed with the infectious disease doctor in each case.
Meningitis: non-specific prevention
This is the observance of personal hygiene rules, hand washing, a ban on the use of shared towels, washcloths, and common utensils in groups. Enterovirus meningitis can be obtained by drinking unboiled water or milk, less often (mainly in children) through unwashed hands, and when using shared towels
You can partially protect yourself from adenovirus and many other meningitis if you dress according to the weather, become tempered, do not have close contact with people who cough or sneeze, just look sick (with reddened eyes, complain of malaise or fever). It must be borne in mind that a cold, which occurs without snot and cough, is also contagious. Therefore, if you are not sure that you are healthy, wear a mask at home that needs to be changed every 3-4 hours.
Prevention of bacterial meningitis is that it is necessary to treat otitis media, sinusitis, other sinusitis, carious teeth, pneumonia, and other infections on time.
Meningitis: specific prevention
It consists of vaccination. For many diseases, scheduled vaccinations are provided: for rubella, mumps, measles, hemophilic infection. There are also unscheduled vaccinations, for example, against pneumococcal or meningococcal infection, the need for which is decided by the parents regarding the child individually. Such prevention of meningitis in children may be necessary in the following cases:
- for children with weakened immunity;
- if the spleen has been removed;
- if the child will be in a boarding school, live in a hostel;
- for children with congenital or acquired CNS pathologies before going to kindergarten or school.
Such vaccinations are done every three to four years, on the advisability of their implementation and possible complications and contraindications, you must first consult with an infectious disease specialist.