Viral meningitis how does it spread

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Viral meningitis: Management, prognosis, and prevention in children. Parasitic meningitis. Rabinstein AA expert opinion. Mayo Clinic. Find out more about meningitis vaccinations. Page last reviewed: 08 March Next review due: 08 March Meningitis is usually caused by a viral or bacterial infection. Several different viruses and bacteria can cause meningitis, including: meningococcal bacteria — there are several different types, called A, B, C, W, X, Y and Z pneumococcal bacteria Haemophilus influenzae type b Hib bacteria enteroviruses — viruses that usually only cause a mild stomach infection the mumps virus the herpes simplex virus — a virus that usually causes cold sores or genital herpes A number of meningitis vaccinations provide protection against many of the infections that can cause meningitis.

Because the death rate from bacterial meningitis decreases noticeably with the early use of appropriate antibiotics, it is important to go to the Emergency Room if you notice yourself, your child, or a loved one with these symptoms. Bacterial meningitis is a rapidly progressing disease, and must be treated immediately. Viral meningitis does result in up to 50, hospitalizations per year, but has a significantly lower mortality rate and usually resolves on its own.

There are no medications for viral meningitis, and since the disease usually resolves on its own, care is mainly supportive. Doctors usually advise bed rest, lots of fluids, and medicine to relieve fever and headache. Louis virus, Zika virus, or Chikungunya virus.

Contact with dust or food contaminated by the urine or stool of infected mice or pet hamsters for lymphocytic choriomeningitis virus. Because of the way they are spread, some viruses such as those spread by mosquitoes cause meningitis only during certain seasons.

Viral meningitis usually begins with symptoms of a viral infection, such as fever, a general feeling of illness malaise , cough, muscle aches, vomiting, loss of appetite, and headache. However, occasionally, people have no symptoms at first. Later, people have symptoms that suggest meningitis. That is, they typically have fever, headache, and a stiff neck. Trying to lower the chin to the chest causes pain and may be impossible. Moving the head in other directions is not as difficult.

Symptoms may resemble those of bacterial meningitis but are usually less severe and develop and progress more slowly. Doctors suspect meningitis when people have a headache, fever, and stiff neck. They then try to determine whether meningitis is present and whether it is caused by bacteria requiring immediate treatment or a virus. Viral meningitis is more likely when the symptoms are less severe.

A spinal tap Spinal Tap Diagnostic procedures may be needed to confirm a diagnosis suggested by the medical history and neurologic examination.

Electroencephalography EEG is a simple, painless procedure in which However, if doctors suspect that pressure within the skull is increased, computed tomography CT or magnetic resonance imaging MRI may be done first to check for causes of the increased pressure such as a tumor or another mass in the brain. Doing a spinal tap when pressure within the skull is increased may cause a life-threatening disorder called brain herniation Herniation: The Brain Under Pressure Head injuries that involve the brain are particularly concerning.

Common causes of head injuries include falls, motor vehicle crashes, assaults, and mishaps during sports and recreational activities After pressure within the skull is lowered or if no mass is detected, the spinal tap is done. The sample of cerebrospinal fluid is sent to a laboratory to be examined and analyzed. Sugar and protein levels and the number and type of white blood cells in the fluid are determined.

The fluid is cultured to check for bacteria and thus rule out or confirm bacterial meningitis. The fluid is not usually cultured for viruses because doing so is technically difficult. The polymerase chain reaction PCR technique, which produces many copies of a gene, is used to identify enteroviruses, herpesviruses such as HSV and varicella-zoster , and some other viruses.

Doctors also test cerebrospinal fluid for the presence of antibodies to certain viruses. For example, detecting antibodies to West Nile virus in cerebrospinal fluid indicates infection with that virus. Levels of antibodies to other viruses are measured and sometimes remeasured a few weeks later. An increase in the level of antibodies to a particular virus indicates that the virus caused a recent infection and so probably was the cause of recent meningitis.

Acyclovir an antiviral drug for herpes simplex virus HSV or varicella-zoster infection.