Meningitis is a sudden inflammation of the lining of the spinal cord and brain. The development of this disease can be triggered by bacteria, viruses, as well as other microorganisms. In addition, the cause of this disease is often non-infectious factors. The most dangerous for human life is bacterial meningitis, as it affects the membrane in close proximity to the central nervous system. In this article, you can find out how meningitis is checked in adults and children, what symptoms this disease accompanies. It should be noted that the symptoms may be different, it will depend on the specific type of causative agent of the disease.
Pathogens
Before answering the question of how meningitis is tested, it is necessary to understand in more detail the causative agents of thisailment. Acute meningitis is a clinical syndrome of the disease, which is characterized by meningeal symptoms that can be observed from several hours to several days. Acute meningitis is defined as an unnatural amount of white cells found in the cerebrospinal fluid. A variety of infectious agents, as well as non-communicable diseases, are capable of provoking an acute syndrome.
The most common infectious causes of acute type of meningitis are infections with viruses, bacteria, mycobacteria that cause this syndrome.
Bacterial meningitis
This form of the disease is most often diagnosed in patients. The overall prevalence of bacterial meningitis is 3 cases for every 100,000 population. It should be noted that in 80% of all diagnosed cases, bacterial meningitis is provoked by Haemophilus influenzae, meningococcus and pneumococcus.
Bacterial meningitis is most often diagnosed in adults. In most cases, the main causative agent of this disease is pneumococcus (47% of cases). The type of pathogen will depend on the age of the patient, as well as other predisposing factors. For example, in newborns, group B streptococci most often provoke this pathology.
Streptococcus group B
Almost half of all cases of meningitis in newborns are diagnosed in the first month of their lives. Streptococcus can be transmitted to the child from the mother during birth, as well as from the handsstaff.
Statistics suggest that the death rate from meningitis, which was caused by group B streptococcus, ranges from 7% to 27%.
Hemophilus influenzae
Earlier, hemophilic meningitis was diagnosed in most cases in infants, as well as in childhood, the peak incidence was observed in children under the age of one year. The decrease in incidence can be explained by the widespread use of the conjugate vaccine, which is aimed at combating Haemophilus influenzae type B.
As for the mortality rate for meningitis, which was caused by Haemophilus influenzae infection, it ranges from 3% to 6% of all cases.
Meningococcus
This pathogen most often provokes the development of meningitis in young people and children. Influenza viruses play a role in the mechanism of development of meningococcal infection. The overall mortality rate for meningitis caused by meningococcal disease would be between 3% and 13%.
Pneumococcus
Today, pneumococcus is considered the most common causative agent of bacterial community-acquired meningitis. The disease is diagnosed in 47% of the total number of all diagnosed meningitis.
Patients who suffer from pneumococcal meningitis often have distant or continuous foci of infection, such as otitis media, pneumonia, sinusitis, mastoiditis, endocarditis.
The most serious infections can occur in those patients who have splenectomy, multiple myeloma, hypogammaglobulinemia,alcoholism, malnutrition, chronic kidney or liver disease, cancer, diabetes insipidus.
Pneumococcus is considered the most common causative agent of the disease in those patients who suffered a fracture of the base of the skull, which was accompanied by a leak of cerebrospinal fluid. The mortality rate in this case will be from 19% to 26%.
Symptomatics
So let's take a closer look at how meningitis is tested. First of all, the specialist pays attention to the external symptoms of the pathology. They will be as follows:
- Headache.
- Nausea.
- Confusion.
- Impaired vision.
- Heat temperature.
- Increased sensitivity to loud sound and bright light.
- Stiff neck.
As a rule, the disease will be determined by the analysis of cerebrospinal fluid. Speaking about how meningitis is checked by this method, then a lumbar puncture is done for this, that is, a lumbar puncture.
Signs
Typical symptoms of the disease will include neck stiffness in the neck, high body temperature, and impaired consciousness. But these symptoms occur in only 45% of cases of bacterial meningitis. If any one sign has not been identified, then meningitis will be unlikely. In adult patients, severe headache is considered the most common sign of the development of the disease. It appears in 90% of all casesdiagnosis of bacterial meningitis.
Rigidity of the muscles at the back of the head, which was caused by irritation of the meninges, is observed in 70% of adult patients who develop a bacterial infection. Other clinical symptoms commonly seen in meningitis include pathological phobia of sounds as well as photophobia.
How to test for meningitis?
Symptoms that appear in the patient, greatly help to diagnose the disease. However, it should be noted that when determining the disease, other features must be taken into account. Consider separately how to check for meningitis in a child and in an adult.
In an adult patient
Additional symptoms will include positive Brudzinski's and Kernig's sign and Lasegue's sign. What is it:
- With Kernig's symptom, the patient lies in bed, while pulling up his legs, which cannot be straightened in the knee area.
- With Brudzinski's symptom, there is an involuntary pulling up of the lower extremities by the patient, who is in the prone position. Involuntary bending of the head forward is also observed.
- With the symptom of Lasegue, passive flexion of the straightened limb in the hip joint to an angle of about 45 degrees occurs, which provokes a sharp pain localized from the back to the legs.
If you don't know how to test for meningitis at home, you can use the above methods. These symptoms have a high diagnostic specificity indefinition of the disease, since similar signs are rarely observed in the case of other ailments.
If meningitis was caused by meningococcal bacteria, then these bacteria will spread through the blood, thereby causing purpura. In such a situation, the appearance of the skin changes, numerous small and irregular red or purple spots appear on the body, on the lower extremities, and mucous membranes. In some cases, they do not form on the soles or flexion surfaces. Despite the fact that such rashes do not occur in all cases, they are quite specific for this disease.
In children
And how to check for meningitis in a child at home? The fact is that young children often do not show any characteristic signs of the disease, especially if there is an initial stage in the development of meningitis. Sometimes babies become just irritable, painful and happy. At the age of 6 months, there is pain in the legs, protrusion of the fontanel, cold extremities, pallor of the skin, which are signs of meningitis. The characteristic rash that was described above will also indicate the development of this disease.
Determination at home
So, we continue to consider how to check for meningitis in adults and children at home. This disease is considered quite serious, it often threatens life with its pathological process, but early symptoms often resemble the flu. This makes it difficult to diagnosewhich is carried out at home.
Before you check meningitis at home, you need to pay attention to the fact that there are 5 varieties of this disease in total. Each of them has its own reasons for development. The most common forms are bacterial and viral meningitis. In most cases, the virus goes away on its own without any therapy. But if a bacterial type of disease is observed, then early diagnosis and therapy are simply necessary for the life of the patient.
So how do you check if you have meningitis? First of all, you should pay attention to such symptoms as an unbearable headache, a sudden increase in body temperature, muscle stiffness at the back of the head. If these signs appear, seek medical attention immediately.
Professional diagnostics
When you seek help from a medical institution, the specialist will carry out some diagnostic measures that are carried out in a strict algorithm. These should include:
- Collecting biological materials.
- Blood glucose test.
- Smear for pathogenic microflora from the pharynx and nasal cavity.
- Coagulogram, PTI.
- HIV blood test.
- Liver sample.
- Blood analysis for blood culture development and sterility.
- Blood test for serology.
- Examination of the fundus for vasoconstriction.
- Liquor.
- CT.
- X-ray of the skull.
- Inspection by narrow specialists.
Meningitis can occur absolutely suddenly, and development will take place even faster. If you do not recognize the disease in time, and also do not start treatment, then this can provoke deafness, epilepsy, convective disorders, hydrocephalus, and death.
