Signs of Meningitis

Meningitis is very literally inflammation of the meninges. Something swollen in a closed space is never good, so it’s important to not miss meningitis when it presents.

Classic triad of meningitis

  1. Fever
  2. Neck stiffness
    • Brudzinski
    • Kernig
  3. Mental status change – in babies this can be an increase in somnolence or irritability (unconsolably crying)

Important organisms:

  • Bacterial
    • Listeria*
    • E. coli*
    • GBS (Group B strep)*
    • Neisseria meningitidis
    • Strep pneumoniae
    • Staph aureus
    • Gram neg bacilli
    • Haemophilus influenza
  • Viral (“aseptic”)
    • HSV
    • Enterovirus
    • HIV
    • Mumps

* These are the common ones in the neonatal period

Bacterial:

  • Positive Gram stain
  • CSF white blood cell (WBC) count >1000/uL with a predominance of neutrophils
  • Low CSF glucose concentration <40 mg/dL (2.2 mmol/L)
  • Empiric treatment: high doses of a 3rd generation cephalosporin (cefotaxime, ceftriaxone) and vancomycin (this covers antibiotic-resistant S. pneumoniaeN. meningitidis, and Hib)

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.