Most often this disease develops in those people who suffer from a weakened immune system. As well as those patients who have a history of a malignant neoplasm, people suffering from diabetes, hemoblastosis, AIDS and uremia.
In itself, meningitis is an infection that affects the soft and hard shell of the human brain. The clinical picture of this disease is demonstrated by chronic fever, increased drowsiness, frequent headaches, and weakness. The causes and symptoms of cryptococcal meningitis in HIV-infected and he althy people will be discussed below.
Common causes of this disease
In order for this disease to begin to develop in the human body, it is necessary to create optimal conditions for pathogenicfungus. When it enters the patient's bloodstream, and this can happen by airborne droplets, he immediately becomes a source of infection for the environment. The most common pathogens and causes of cryptococcal meningitis, the photo of which is not laid out for ethical reasons, are:
- Cryptococci. These pathogens are the most common. They enter the environment from bird droppings, such fungi can be found in fresh fruits and vegetables, and many streptococci are stored in the soil. And you can easily become infected with this fungus while eating or inhaling dust particles. The bulk of those who get sick in this way are people who have AIDS. Among them, cases of infection are much more common.
- Candida. This type of fungal disease is natural, it lives in the human body, but is in a dormant state. If it is activated, then the development of infectious diseases will begin, often this occurs against the background of immunodeficiency. Cases of meningitis from the pathogen Candida account for 15% of the total number of patients.
- Coccidia. In order for this virus to become the causative agent of meningitis, it is necessary to live in endemic regions of the United States or in Central America.
These viral diseases primarily affect the brain. This occurs against the background of other infections, most often the disease affects elderly patients who have a deficiency of immunity, and pregnant women. Unfortunately, at risk are those people whowho are immunocompromised. Cryptococcal meningitis affects HIV-infected patients, diabetics, people suffering from alcoholism, newborns, patients who have undergone cytostatic therapy. Cancer patients, patients with chronic renal failure and people who have blood diseases are also at risk.
Mechanism of infection
When a virus enters the human body, it becomes a pathogen and protective immunological factors begin to react to it. They have functions to prevent further development of infection, provided that the patient is physically he althy.
If a person's immune system is weakened, fungal diseases will begin to develop in the body without any problems. Against the background of this disease, immunity will begin to gradually decline, as it will try to resist fungal spores, but at the same time the blood flow will carry them throughout the body, provoking the development of cryptococcal meningitis in different organs and tissues. In these places, the active development of the pathogen will occur. The moment the spore enters the brain membrane, the fungus will have to face a real barrier, as the brain tissues provide complete protection against penetration.
How's it going?
Cryptococcal meningitis during its active formation is accompanied by serious inflammation. In the process of the development of the disease, clouding and thickening of the tissue membrane occurs, its surface acquires a slightly bumpy character. In rare cases, the patient has a pathology inform of hemorrhage. The inflammatory process is actively spreading and at any moment can begin to attack the cerebral substance, and thus encephalitis will begin to develop in the membrane of the spinal cord.
Disease classification
In neurology, several definitions of this lesion are used, they are classified depending on the etiology and clinical course. From what pathogen struck the human body, meningitis can be cryptococcal and candidal or aspergillosis, as well as histoplasmic. Depending on the course of the disease, meningitis is divided into:
- chronic;
- subacute;
- spicy.
Chronic means symptomatology for several weeks, in terms of clinical manifestations, this occurs at a moderate pace. If we consider the subacute variant, it differs from the acute one in that the symptomatology is slowly carried out and it is a little blurred. Subsequently, such meningitis can become chronic.
Acute meningitis appears suddenly, it develops rapidly, and the symptoms show themselves "in all their glory." This type of meningitis is extremely rare and is predominantly of the candidal type.
Symptoms of disease
The onset of the disease often has characteristic indicators, they show symptoms very slowly, so it is not immediately possible to determine the exact diagnosis. But the patient has headaches, the temperature rises, vomiting occurs and attacksdrowsiness.
Vomiting can be repeated, and each time the state of he alth will become worse. The patient's body temperature will remain at 37.2 and 37.9. seems to be slow. Often, patients notice sensitivity to light, anxiety appears.
Diagnosis of meningitis
Diagnosing such a disease is extremely difficult, since the symptoms are very blurred, there are no clear signs of meningeal syndrome, and this, in turn, makes it difficult to make a correct diagnosis. In order to find out what is happening with the patient, it is necessary to conduct the following studies:
- Examination by a neurologist. The doctor will monitor the patient, find out if there are any meningeal symptoms, assess the level of consciousness, and also find out if there are signs that would indicate damage to the spinal cord.
- Lumbar puncture in progress. This procedure allows you to determine the liquid pressure, also understand the degree of transparency of the cerebrospinal fluid and evaluate its color. After that, the liquid is sent for microscopy, where, in case of illness, fungal spores are found.
- MRI of the head. This procedure is performed in order to avoid cerebral expressions.
Tests are sent to the laboratory to verify pathogens, find out its sensitivity toantimycotic drugs.
Once symptoms of cryptococcal meningitis have been identified, treatment should be initiated immediately.
Therapy
Basically, the treatment of this disease is carried out with the help of taking drugs. Until such time as the data on the definition of the fungus are confirmed, treatment is carried out empirically. After that, according to the results of the tests, a certain therapy is established.
Course of treatment
Without consulting a specialist, therapy should not be carried out in any case. The course of treatment is determined by the doctor and has three directions:
- Monotherapy. It is carried out with the help of a slow drip injection of the drug to the patient. If there are indicators that require a more intensive administration of the drug, then therapy can take from 1.5 to 2.5 months. This treatment lasts until the cerebrospinal fluid is completely sanitized.
- Combined treatment. This type of procedure implies a combination of several drugs intended for complex therapy at once. This method is considered the most effective in patients with streptococcal infection. The combination of drugs is prescribed individually, at the moment no specific set has been established.
- Anti-relapse therapy. This event is necessary as a preventive measure so that the disease does not relapse. As the main treatment is carried out, so is the therapy for relieving symptoms. Doctors are engaged in stopping vomiting, normalizinginternal pressure, are fighting the convulsive syndrome, which often occurs in patients with meningitis.
Complications
In 40 out of 100 patients, meningitis occurs with disorders of the internal organs. This leads to nausea and frequent urge to vomit. This infectious process begins to develop and penetrates the membrane of the spinal cord or brain, and thus the radicular syndrome appears.
If the transition of the disease to the infectious-inflammatory level was carried out, then in this case the cerebral tissues begin to acquire new symptoms, a serious impairment of consciousness occurs. This fungal disease is very dangerous, as it can affect the brain, and this will lead to coma or death.
