The meninges are the fine tissue coverings of the brain and spinal cord. The spinal fluid, which saturates both the brain and the spinal cord, circulates in the space between the meninges. An infection of this fluid is called meningitis. Meningitis is a very serious bacterial infection, and left untreated, many will suffer permanent damage to their nervous system, and may die. Some of the symptoms of spinal meningitis include a sudden fever, neck stiffness, headache, vomiting, a rash, and, coma. In up to 30% of patients, the bacterium releases an endotoxin that increases the permeability of blood vessels. As a result, blood pressure falls and the shock can cause the loss of skin and parts of limbs. The symptoms occur 2-10 days from the infection, but usually occur in 5 days.
Bacteria called Neisseria meningitidis cause Spinal Meningitis. This bacteria is commonly found in the nose and throat of 30% of people at one time or another, while only very few of those people will ever develop a serious infection. Some infections may even be considerably less mild that a serious infection, and only involve a headache, and/or a fever. The Neisseria meningitidis, or Hib bacteria are not spread by casual contact. They are only transmitted through either prolonged or frequent contact with the respiratory or throat secretions of some one who is infected. A good example of this type of contact would be kissing.
In 1996 in the United States, there were 1.3 cases of spinal meningitis per every 100,000 population, with 33% of the total infections occurring in children under 5 years of age. During the same time in the United States, .45 cases of the meningitis caused by Haemophilus influenzae type b were found in a population of 100,000 people, with 22% occurring in children under 5 years of age. There are several effective anti- biotics available for treating spinal meningitis, but it is very important for treatment to begin early in the course of the disease.
Spinal meningitis can occur at any time during the year, but is most common around winter and spring. The disease mainly strikes children and adults. Once contracted, the disease can be contagious for the whole duration of the sickness, but usually becomes non-infectious after the use of antibiotics. The bacteria cannot survive outside the body, and are not carried in animals. Even close family members living with a patient infected with the bacteria have only a 1 in 300 chance of contracting the disease. There is a vaccine for the bacteria, but it protects against only the major strands of the bacteria, and is given primarily to foreign travelers, or military men traveling to areas where there is a high risk of contracting the disease.
When someone is diagnosed with Spinal meningitis, they are normally hospitalized. They require immediate antibiotic therapy. Medicines including penicillin, tetracycline, and rifampicin are used in treatment of meningitis. Even with treatment, around 10% of patients die from the infection, so it is extremely important to recognize signs of the meningitis early, and get antibiotics as soon as possible. Before there were antibiotics for the disease, there were always complications, and mostly all cases lead to death.
Return to Bacterial Disease Page