What is bacterial meningitis? What are the leading causes of bacterial meningitis in the United States? What are the risk factors for getting bacterial meningitis? How do the germs that cause bacterial meningitis spread from person to person?.

Unveiling the Complexities of Bacterial Meningitis

Bacterial meningitis is a serious and potentially life-threatening infection that affects the membranes surrounding the brain and spinal cord, known as the meninges. While bacterial meningitis can be devastating, it is important to note that most people who contract the disease will recover, although they may face permanent disabilities such as brain damage, hearing loss, and learning difficulties.

The Leading Causes of Bacterial Meningitis in the United States

Several types of bacteria can cause meningitis, with the leading causes in the United States including Streptococcus pneumoniae, Group B Streptococcus, Neisseria meningitidis, Haemophilus influenzae, Listeria monocytogenes, and Escherichia coli. Additionally, Mycobacterium tuberculosis, which causes tuberculosis (TB), can also lead to a less common form of bacterial meningitis, known as TB meningitis.

Exploring the Risk Factors for Bacterial Meningitis

Certain factors can increase a person’s risk of contracting bacterial meningitis. These risk factors include age, with babies being at a higher risk compared to other age groups; group settings, such as college campuses, where infectious diseases can spread more easily; certain medical conditions, medications, and surgical procedures that weaken the immune system; and working with meningitis-causing pathogens, as in the case of microbiologists. Travelers may also be at an increased risk when visiting areas with higher rates of meningococcal disease, such as the meningitis belt in sub-Saharan Africa or during the annual Hajj and Umrah pilgrimage in Mecca.

Understanding How Bacterial Meningitis Spreads

The germs that cause bacterial meningitis can spread through various routes, depending on the type of bacteria involved. While some, like Listeria monocytogenes, can be transmitted through contaminated food, most of these germs spread from person to person. The specific ways in which the bacteria spread often depend on the type of bacteria, and it’s important to note that some people can be “carriers” of the bacteria without actually becoming sick themselves, but can still pass it on to others.

Examining the Transmission of Different Bacterial Meningitis Pathogens

Here are some of the most common examples of how people spread the different types of bacteria that cause bacterial meningitis:

• Group B Streptococcus and Escherichia coli: Mothers can pass these bacteria to their babies during birth.
• Haemophilus influenzae, Mycobacterium tuberculosis, and Streptococcus pneumoniae: These bacteria are spread through coughing or sneezing while in close contact with others, who then breathe in the bacteria.
• Neisseria meningitidis: These bacteria are spread through sharing respiratory or throat secretions (saliva or spit), typically during close contact (such as coughing or kissing) or lengthy contact (such as living together).
• Escherichia coli: These bacteria can be transmitted by eating food prepared by people who did not wash their hands well after using the toilet.

The Unique Risks Posed by Listeria Monocytogenes and Group B Streptococcus

Listeria monocytogenes and Group B Streptococcus pose unique risks to certain populations. Pregnant individuals have an increased risk of contracting a Listeria infection, which can lead to miscarriage, stillbirth, premature delivery, or life-threatening infection of the newborn, including meningitis. Pregnant women can also pass Group B Streptococcus to their babies during delivery, and newborns infected with Group B strep can develop serious complications, such as pneumonia, sepsis, and meningitis.

Proactive Measures to Mitigate the Spread of Bacterial Meningitis

To reduce the risk of contracting and spreading bacterial meningitis, it is crucial to take proactive measures, such as practicing good hygiene, avoiding close contact with individuals who may be ill, and seeking prompt medical attention if symptoms arise. Additionally, vaccination against certain bacterial meningitis pathogens, such as Streptococcus pneumoniae and Neisseria meningitidis, can provide effective protection for those at higher risk.

By understanding the complexities of bacterial meningitis, the leading causes, risk factors, and transmission methods, individuals and healthcare professionals can work together to prevent the spread of this serious disease and improve patient outcomes.

Bacterial Meningitis | CDC

Bacterial meningitis is serious. Some people with the infection die and death can occur in as little as a few hours. However, most people recover from bacterial meningitis. Those who do recover can have permanent disabilities, such as brain damage, hearing loss, and learning disabilities.

Causes

Several types of bacteria can cause meningitis. Leading causes in the United States include

• Streptococcus pneumoniae
• Group B Streptococcus
• Neisseria meningitidis
• Haemophilus influenzae
• Listeria monocytogenes
• Escherichia coli

Mycobacterium tuberculosis, which causes tuberculosis or TB, is a less common cause of bacterial meningitis (called TB meningitis).

Many of these bacteria can also be associated with another serious illness, sepsis. Sepsis is the body’s extreme response to infection. It is a life-threatening medical emergency.  Sepsis happens when an infection triggers a chain reaction throughout your body. Without timely treatment, sepsis can quickly lead to tissue damage, organ failure, and death.

Some causes of bacterial meningitis are more likely to affect certain age groups:

• Newborns: Group B Streptococcus, S. pneumoniae, L. monocytogenes, E. coli
• Babies and young children: S. pneumoniae, N. meningitidis, H. influenzae, group B Streptococcus, M. tuberculosis
• Teens and young adults: N. meningitidis, S. pneumoniae
• Older adults: S. pneumoniae, N. meningitidis, H. influenzae, group B Streptococcus, L. monocytogenes

Risk Factors

Certain factors increase a person’s risk for getting bacterial meningitis. These risk factors include:

• Age: Babies are at increased risk for bacterial meningitis compared to people in other age groups. However, people of any age can develop bacterial meningitis. See section above for which bacteria more commonly affect which age groups.
• Group setting: Infectious diseases tend to spread where large groups of people gather. For example, college campuses have reported outbreaks of meningococcal disease, caused by N. meningitidis.
• Certain medical conditions: Certain medical conditions, medications, and surgical procedures put people at increased risk for meningitis. For example, having an HIV infection or a cerebrospinal fluid leak, or not having a spleen can increase a person’s risk for several types of bacterial meningitis.
• Working with meningitis-causing pathogens: Microbiologists routinely exposed to meningitis-causing bacteria are at increased risk for meningitis.
• Travel: Travelers may be at increased risk for meningococcal disease, caused by N. meningitidis, if they travel to certain places, such as:
  • The meningitis belt in sub-Saharan Africa, particularly during the dry season
  • Mecca during the annual Hajj and Umrah pilgrimage

In many countries, TB is much more common than in the United States. Travelers should avoid close contact or prolonged time with known TB patients in crowded, enclosed environments (for example, clinics, hospitals, prisons, or homeless shelters).

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How It Spreads

Certain germs that cause bacterial meningitis, such as L. monocytogenes, can spread through food. But most of these germs spread from one person to another.

How people spread the germs often depends on the type of bacteria. It is also important to know that people can have these bacteria in or on their bodies without being sick. These people are “carriers.” Most carriers never become sick, but can still spread the bacteria to others.

Here are some of the most common examples of how people spread each type of bacteria to each other:

• Group B Streptococcus and E. coli: Mothers can pass these bacteria to their babies during birth.
• H. influenzae, M. tuberculosis, and S. pneumoniae: People spread these bacteria by coughing or sneezing while in close contact with others, who breathe in the bacteria.
• N. meningitidis: People spread these bacteria by sharing respiratory or throat secretions (saliva or spit). This typically occurs during close (coughing or kissing) or lengthy (living together) contact.
• E. coli: People can get these bacteria by eating food prepared by people who did not wash their hands well after using the toilet.

People usually get sick from E. coli and L. monocytogenes by eating contaminated food.

Signs and Symptoms

Being pregnant increases a person’s risk of getting a Listeria infection  (L. monocytogenes). Pregnant people with a Listeria infection may not have any symptoms or may only have a fever and other flu-like symptoms, such as fatigue and muscle aches. However, infection during pregnancy can lead to miscarriage, stillbirth, premature delivery, or life-threatening infection of the newborn, including meningitis. Find out which foods are more likely to contain Listeria and steps you can take to protect your and your baby’s health.

Pregnant women can pass group B Streptococcus (group B strep) to their baby during delivery. Newborns infected with group B strep can develop meningitis or other serious infections soon after birth. Talk with your doctor or midwife about getting a group B test when you are 36 through 37 weeks pregnant. Doctors give antibiotics (during labor) to women who test positive in order to prevent infections in newborns.

Meningitis symptoms include sudden onset of

• Fever
• Headache
• Stiff neck

There are often other symptoms, such as

• Nausea
• Vomiting
• Photophobia (eyes being more sensitive to light)
• Altered mental status (confusion)

Newborns and babies may not have, or it may be difficult to notice the classic symptoms listed above. Instead, babies may

• Be slow or inactive
• Be irritable
• Vomit
• Feed poorly
• Have a bulging fontanelle (the “soft spot” on a baby’s head)
• Have abnormal reflexes

If you think your baby or child has any of these symptoms, call the doctor right away.

Typically, symptoms of bacterial meningitis develop within 3 to 7 days after exposure; note, this is not true for TB meningitis, which can develop much later after exposure to the bacteria.

People with bacterial meningitis can have seizures, go into a coma, and even die. For this reason, anyone who thinks they may have meningitis should see a doctor as soon as possible.

Diagnosis

If a doctor suspects meningitis, they will collect samples of blood or cerebrospinal fluid (fluid near the spinal cord). A laboratory will test the samples to see what is causing the infection. Knowing the specific cause of meningitis helps doctors treat it.

Treatment

Doctors treat bacterial meningitis with a number of antibiotics. It is important to start treatment as soon as possible.

Prevention

Vaccination

Vaccines are the most effective way to protect against certain types of bacterial meningitis. There are vaccines for 4 types of bacteria that can cause meningitis:

• Meningococcal vaccines help protect against N. meningitidis
• Pneumococcal vaccines help protect against S. pneumoniae
• Haemophilus influenzae serotype b (Hib) vaccines help protect against Hib
• Bacille Calmette-Guérin vaccine helps protect against tuberculosis disease, but is not widely used in the United States

Make sure you and your child are vaccinated on schedule.

Like with any vaccine, these vaccines do not work 100% of the time. The vaccines also do not protect against infections from all the types (strains) of each of these bacteria. For these reasons, there is still a chance vaccinated people can develop bacterial meningitis.

Prophylaxis

When someone has bacterial meningitis, a doctor may recommend antibiotics to help prevent people around the patient from getting sick. Doctors call this prophylaxis. CDC recommends prophylaxis for:

• Close contacts of someone with meningitis caused by N. meningitidis
• Household members of someone with a serious Hib infection when the household includes one or more people at increased risk of Hib based on age, vaccination status, and/or immunocompromising conditions

Doctors or local health departments recommend who should get prophylaxis.

Healthy Pregnancy Practices

Pregnant women should talk to their doctor or midwife about getting tested for group B Streptococcus. Women receive the test when they are 36 through 37 weeks pregnant. Doctors give antibiotics (during labor) to women who test positive in order to prevent passing group B strep to their newborns.

Pregnant women can also reduce their risk of meningitis caused by L. monocytogenes. Women should avoid certain foods during pregnancy and safely prepare others.

Healthy Habits

You can also help protect yourself and others from bacterial meningitis and other health problems by maintaining healthy habits:

• Don’t smoke and avoid cigarette smoke as much as possible
• Get plenty of rest
• Avoid close contact with people who are sick
• Wash your hands often with soap and water (use hand sanitizer if soap and water aren’t available)
• Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue when you cough or sneeze (use your upper sleeve or elbow if a tissue isn’t available)

These healthy habits are especially important for people at increased risk for disease, including:

• Young babies
• Older adults
• People with weak immune systems
• People without a spleen or a spleen that doesn’t work the way it should

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The cause of death in bacterial meningitis

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. 2020 Feb 27;20(1):182.

doi: 10.1186/s12879-020-4899-x.

A Sharew 
¹
, J Bodilsen 
²
, B R Hansen 
³
, H Nielsen 
^2
 
4
, C T Brandt 
^5
 
6

Affiliations

Affiliations

• ¹ Department of pulmonary and Infectious Diseases, Nordsjællands Hospital, University of Copenhagen, Dyrehavevej 29, 3400, Hilleroed, Denmark.
• ² Department of Infectious Diseases, Aalborg University Hospital, Aalborg, Denmark.
• ³ Department of Infectious Diseases, University Hospital Copenhagen Hvidovre, Hvidovre, Denmark.
• ⁴ Department of Clinical Medicine, Aalborg University, Aalborg, Denmark.
• ⁵ Department of pulmonary and Infectious Diseases, Nordsjællands Hospital, University of Copenhagen, Dyrehavevej 29, 3400, Hilleroed, Denmark. [email protected].
• ⁶ Department of Clinical Medicine, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark. [email protected].

• PMID:

  32106821

• PMCID:

  PMC7045616

• DOI:

  10.1186/s12879-020-4899-x

Free PMC article

A Sharew et al.

BMC Infect Dis.

2020.

Free PMC article

. 2020 Feb 27;20(1):182.

doi: 10.1186/s12879-020-4899-x.

Authors

A Sharew 
¹
, J Bodilsen 
²
, B R Hansen 
³
, H Nielsen 
^2
 
4
, C T Brandt 
^5
 
6

Affiliations

• ¹ Department of pulmonary and Infectious Diseases, Nordsjællands Hospital, University of Copenhagen, Dyrehavevej 29, 3400, Hilleroed, Denmark.
• ² Department of Infectious Diseases, Aalborg University Hospital, Aalborg, Denmark.
• ³ Department of Infectious Diseases, University Hospital Copenhagen Hvidovre, Hvidovre, Denmark.
• ⁴ Department of Clinical Medicine, Aalborg University, Aalborg, Denmark.
• ⁵ Department of pulmonary and Infectious Diseases, Nordsjællands Hospital, University of Copenhagen, Dyrehavevej 29, 3400, Hilleroed, Denmark. [email protected].
• ⁶ Department of Clinical Medicine, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark. [email protected].

• PMID:

  32106821

• PMCID:

  PMC7045616

• DOI:

  10. 1186/s12879-020-4899-x

Abstract

Background:

Death from bacterial meningitis is rarely attributed to the actual event causing death. The present study therefore categorized and characterized the cause and time of death due to bacterial meningitis.

Methods:

In a cohort of patients > 15 years of age with community acquired bacterial meningitis the medical records were reviewed, and a clinical cause of death categorized into six main categories: 1) CNS complications, 2) Systemic complications, 3) Combination of systemic and CNS complications, 4) Sudden death, 5) Withdrawal of care, or 6) Unknown.

Results:

We identified 358 patients of which 84 (23%) died in-hospital. Causes of death were ascribed to CNS complications in 43%, Systemic complications in 39%, Combined CNS and systemic complications in 4%, Sudden death in 7% and withdrawal of care in 5%. Brain herniation, circulatory failure, intractable seizures and other brain injury were the most common specific causes of death within 14 days from admission (55%).

Conclusion:

Fatal complications due to the primary infection – meningitis – is most common within 14 days of admission. The diversity of complications causing death in meningitis suggest that determining the clinical cause of death is essential to the evaluation of novel treatment strategies.

Keywords:

Bacterial meningitis; Brain herniation; Cause of death; Central nervous system complications; Sepsis; Systemic complications.

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

Figures

Fig. 1

Time from admission to death.…

Fig. 1

Time from admission to death. At 7 days from admission 41 of 84…

Fig. 1

Time from admission to death. At 7 days from admission 41 of 84 patients were dead (49%). Within 14 days of admission 56 patients (66%) had died. Median time to death was 8 days (3 to 16.8)

See this image and copyright information in PMC

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a disease that kills in minutes

Five-year-old Muscovite Yana could not be saved by doctors from both capitals – she fell ill when she traveled from St. Petersburg to Moscow. Her mother made this story public so that everyone knew about the disease that kills in minutes.

Five-year
Muscovite Yana could not be saved by the doctors of both capitals – she fell ill when
traveled from Petersburg to Moscow. Her mom made this story public for
so that everyone knows about the disease that kills in minutes.

“Maximum repost”

mother Yana began the retelling of her tragedy with words. She is convinced that if all
parents knew the symptoms of meningococcal infection, then many children could be
save.

“I
I am writing this post so that all around the parents of children of any age are
vigilant, did not expect irreversible consequences: pain in the head, sore throat,
vomiting, high fever can be not just SARS, but a disease with
fatal… due
there is no information on this disease in our country, vaccination is not
obligatory and paid,” the woman wrote on the social network.

How
Yana said that on January 7, 2018, she was returning with her daughter after a vacation in
Petersburg to Moscow. A couple of hours before the train left, my daughter complained about
chills, after a couple of hours, already on the train, the temperature rose to 39.5. All the time
asked for a drink. The temperature was brought down for a while, but it again rapidly
rose to 40, 40.5 degrees. The girl began to rave.

Chief
train called an ambulance to a stop in Tver. Doctors gave an injection of lytic mixture,
but they did not insist on hospitalization, saying that they did not see anything fatal.
The family moved on. Mom notes that the child was lying on the train all the time
on his side and complained of pain in his leg at the slightest touch. Then came
spots on the skin.

Promised
there were no ambulances at the station in the capital; doctors at the station first-aid post
also did not notice anything extraordinary at first, and only after Yana
said that her daughter complains of pain in her leg, the doctor began to check exactly
symptoms of meningitis. The girl was rushed to the hospital, but after a few
minutes she died.

Doctors
did everything possible. For people who ask. We didn’t get sick
colds. Everything, absolutely all vaccinations were done. Take care of family and friends!
Be safe! Check and recheck the symptoms! – Eva’s mother writes in
social network. – Our daughter was loved by her parents and all the people around her. She
was happy, not childishly sensible and dreamed of being a princess, having
magic wand and make people happy… and do gymnastics on
air canvases … “.

B
the same day in the same hospital in Moscow a few hours earlier from the same
infection, 11-month-old Alfiya died.

Meningitis cycle – 35-40 years

Last
times an outbreak of meningococcal infection in St. Petersburg and the neighboring 47 region
recorded in autumn 2015. In the Smolny Newsletter
it is specified that several children in Sestroretsk fell ill with serous meningitis.
Doctors did their best to reassure the population, explaining that there was no epidemic
No. Clinical manifestations of “serous meningitis” were found in 9children,
All of them were promptly hospitalized and treated in the hospital. However,
then we are talking about one of the subtypes of a terrible infection – serous meningitis, which
must be distinguished from the more dangerous meningococcal bacterial meningitis.
Serous meningitis with timely help is quite easily cured without
consequences for the body. Petersburg for the last decades has not been
recorded deaths caused by serous meningitis. Wherein
infectious disease doctors note that the latest epidemic rise in the incidence
meningitis in Russia was at 1980s, and its cycle is 35-40 years.
This means that the incidence is likely to increase in the coming years.

There is no outbreak of meningitis in St. Petersburg

Frightened
With terrible news from Moscow, Petersburgers started talking about an outbreak of meningitis. “PD”
appealed directly to the Office of Rospotrebnadzor, the Health Committee
Smolny and to the chief pediatric infectious disease specialist of the city Vladimir Timchenko for
explanations and statistics.

B
The Office of Rospotrebnadzor was assured that there was no outbreak, no outbreaks
morbidity was not recorded, the incidence does not exceed
average scores.

B
The Health Committee also clarified that there was no talk of any epidemics
goes and reported that in 2016, three children died from meningitis in St. Petersburg,
in 2017 – five. These are certainly tragedies, but not exceeding the usual
mortality rates from this disease.

Chief
pediatric infectious disease specialist Vladimir Timchenko suggested that rumors about an alleged
outbreak is probably related to the fact that on January 30 and 31 in St. Petersburg
the Russian scientific and practical conference “Meningococcal infection:
old experience and new threats. Other bacterial and viral lesions of the nervous system
systems”, organized by the Research Institute of Children’s Infections. It will report the results
study of meningococcal infection by specialists from leading medical institutions
Russia, the experience of diagnostics, prevention and treatment of diseases,
caused by meningococcus.

“This is
an absolutely planned event, in no way connected with the cases in Moscow.
I responsibly declare that there is no increase in the incidence of meningitis in St. Petersburg,”
– said the chief pediatric infectious disease specialist.

He
also said that in the fight against such a dangerous and serious disease as
meningococcal infection is the only reliable means of prevention is
vaccination. Meningitis vaccinations are not
included in the National Immunization Calendar, since the issue of inclusion
a certain vaccination is decided based on the number of cases per 100 thousand
population (for inclusion in the calendar, the threshold must exceed two cases per 100
thousand population. In meningococcal infection – 0.3 cases per 100 thousand), but
You can and should do it on your own initiative. Now the world is producing
about 20 types of vaccines against meningococcal meningitis.

“Need
understand that the vaccine will either completely protect the child from infection, or help
recover with minimal complications. This is especially important in the case of
meningococcal infection, in which the probability of death is high,
noted the chief pediatric infectious disease specialist of St. Petersburg.

What you need to know about meningitis

Meningococcal
(bacterial) meningitis is a severe form of meningitis, a serious infection of the small intestine
membranes surrounding the brain and spinal cord. More common for bacterial meningitis
affects small children aged 0 to 5 years. The chance of getting sick depends
from immunity. Prerequisites for the disease may be constant contact of people
indoors, high temperature and humidity, increased
concentration of carbon dioxide and hydrogen sulfide.

Feature
of this infection is that from the manifestation of the first symptoms to the most severe condition
a few hours or even minutes pass – often a person does not even have time to get there
to the medical facility. If you are late with treatment, then the victim is waiting for either
disability or death.

If
diagnosed within the first 12 hours of onset, the risk of death
outcome is reduced to 0.7-1.5%. If treatment was started in a day – up to 2 – 4%,
after two days – 5 – 6%, after three or four days – 15-18%. No treatment 85%
sick people die, 15% remain severely disabled.

Meningococcal symptoms

Hatching
the period ranges from 2 to 10 days (usually 4-6 days).

Start
reminiscent of SARS: headache, fever, runny nose, sore throat. However
with meningitis, the onset of the disease is acute, almost sudden; headache worse and
increases constantly due to the onset of edema. Patients describe it as
splitting, bursting. Regular analgesics don’t help.

appears
photophobia and hyperacusis – a person hardly perceives even faint sounds;
then the “sheet syndrome” is fixed – any, even the lightest touches
cause painful reactions. A characteristic rash appears on the skin. With severe
forms are characterized by disturbances of consciousness (somnolence, coma). After 12-14 hours from the beginning
disease, symptoms of irritation of the meninges appear, for which
characterized by special postures of patients with meningitis – the so-called meningeal posture
(the patient lies on his side with his legs bent and his head thrown back).

From
of all sick children under the age of one, every third dies; in adults, mortality
reaches 50 percent.

How to distinguish meningococcal meningitis from SARS and what kind of vaccination to make against a deadly infection Sergey Savostyanov / TASS

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Meningococcus is a terrible infection that can literally lead to death in a day or to such meningitis, about which people say “I got sick and became a fool.”

The most notorious outbreaks of meningoccal infection in the last year occurred among employees of the popular marketplace. At the end of 2022, 11 people became infected and fell ill at the Ozon warehouse in Istra near Moscow. At the same time, according to Fontanka, an employee of the St. Petersburg Ozone died in the Botkin hospital – a girl who had come to St. Petersburg from Murmansk. Now seven people have fallen ill, of which two Ozon employees in Yekaterinburg have died. With the help of doctors, Fontanka figured out why people die from this bacterial infection in general in our time and whether it is possible to protect themselves from it.

According to Fontanka, 10 Petersburgers with meningitis are currently being treated in the city’s Botkin hospital. Almost every day, an ambulance delivers patients with such a diagnosis. But these are only those who have the so-called primary meningitis – serous, tick-borne and yes, meningococcal. With the secondary, they go to ordinary, non-infectious hospitals. For example, bacterial endocarditis can cause embolic meningitis. Such patients are hospitalized in cardiosurgical departments of general hospitals. When otitis or sinusitis as a complication of a common cold becomes the cause of bacterial meningitis, they are dealt with by ENT doctors in multidisciplinary hospitals.

As Mikhail Komarov, head of the ENT department of City Hospital No. 26, explained, when a patient develops secondary meningitis due to an ear or nose disease (there are 2–3 such patients per month), a surgical intervention is performed to remove the primary focus infections: “If by this time an abscess has not formed in the brain, then the patient is treated with antibiotics that penetrate the blood-brain barrier and destroy the infection in the cerebrospinal fluid spaces and brain tissues. The probability of dying from this group of diseases is very high and is 10%, no less than the possibility of remaining disabled with a deep neurological deficit. These outcomes may have predisposing causes – old age, diseases of the cardiovascular system, immune deficiency, and others.

Otorhinolaryngologist Komarov emphasizes: secondary bacterial meningitis is not associated with meningococcal infection, the treatment of patients with which is carried out only in an infectious disease hospital with strict adherence to anti-epidemic measures.

In a specialized hospital – the Botkin hospital – they told Fontanka that in recent years there have been few patients with meningococcal infection – the Neisseria meningitidis bacterium, no more than 5-10 people a year. In general, there have been no outbreaks of meningococcal infection in St. Petersburg for a long time, the last one happened more than 15 years ago.

The disease is dangerous because it can proceed in different ways, for example, with meningococcemia – bleeding in the adrenal glands and with septic shock. And this is deadly: from the appearance of the first symptoms to the most severe condition, they can develop in a matter of hours. If you miss the moment when you can help avoid serious complications, then a person will either become disabled or die.

Reference:

In 2021, 10 children were registered in St.

In 2022, 17 people were registered with meningococcal infection, including 9 children under the age of 17. One person died.

In 2023, 17 cases have already been registered, including three children under 17 years old. One person died.

Meningococcal infection became more active after covid, when the coronavirus weakened and other infections began to return. More precisely, meningococcus did not go anywhere, but behaved with restraint. It is always around us – in the air, especially in humid regions, which include St. Petersburg. In a “dormant” state, meningococcus lives in the nasopharynx in 10-15% of the population – the risk of developing the disease increases if someone’s immunity is sharply weakened. It happens that it sits in the nose and immediately dies when the immune system is strong, it happens that it takes root in it and nasopharyngitis develops, the disease proceeds like an acute respiratory viral infection and this is where it all ends. And in a weakened person, it penetrates through the nose into the brain and develops severe generalized meningitis.

Help

The three main symptoms of meningococcal meningitis are:

9 0073 1. Chills and rapid temperature increase above 38-39 degrees.

2. Extremely severe, intolerable headache for which pain pills do not help.

3. Hyperesthesia – increased sensitivity to light, sounds, touch.

Meningococcus is a cyclically recurring infection, and periods of “lull” are just 15–20 years. Therefore, now infectious disease specialists are wary of information about the emerging diseases of generalized meningoccal infection.

Marina Dessau, Head of the Department of Infectious and Parasitic Diseases of the City Polyclinic No. 122, explains: “The cyclical activity of meningococcal infection suggests that the incidence increases strongly every 15–20 years. And the larger the gap – the “quiet period”, the more aggressively this microbe will behave in a year of high activity.”

In the outpatient network, physicians usually deal with the aftermath of a generalized infection or when a patient is reported to have been infected with the bacterium Neisseria meningitidis. “Doctors work in the “center”, examine those who have been in contact with the infected. But it is still difficult to identify the source if there are no clinical manifestations, says Marina Dessau. – There are many carriers of this infection, each of them can potentially become its distributor. But not everyone to whom it is transmitted will develop a severe clinical picture of the disease: it is easiest to infect a young child or a debilitated elderly person, and they are also at high risk of a severe course of the disease.

Information:

According to statistics, if the diagnosis is made in the first 12 hours from the onset of the disease, the risk of death is reduced to 0.7-1.5%. If treatment was started in a day – up to 2-4%, after two days – 5-6%, after three or four days – 15-18%. Without treatment, 85% of patients die, 15% remain severely disabled.

However, when there are symptoms, it is rare to diagnose the disease at an early stage. Because meningococcal meningitis begins with signs of a common cold. It is possible to differentiate with a respiratory infection with appropriate vigilance three days after the onset of the disease. In a person with SARS, the symptoms should decrease, with meningococcus they increase, including the temperature rises, the headache becomes more intense. But even this does not always make it possible to distinguish meningococcal infection from a respiratory virus. It is good if the patient is hospitalized before meningococcemia and the appearance of a rash on the body. But even in these cases, patients are difficult and long treated in the hospital. And when they return home, they are observed in outpatient medical facilities by local therapists (pediatricians) and neurologists, who work with complications that depend on the severity of the disease — hearing loss, visual impairment, memory problems, paresis and paralysis.

Doctors say that the best prevention is sun and water, vitamins, and with them – good immunity. But it is not exactly. Only vaccination gives 100% certainty. An expensive vaccine has recently been included in the National Immunization Schedule.

Meningococcal bacterium Neisseria meningitidis, which causes severe forms of generalized sepsis, can be of different groups, a quarter of registered cases occur in a representative of serogroup B, against which the Bexero vaccine (GSK, UK) protects. She is not in St. Petersburg today.

It is possible to vaccinate with the Menactra vaccine (Sanofi, USA), which protects against other serotypes.

As the infectious disease specialist Marina Dessau explained, free of charge, within the framework of the National Immunization Calendar, vaccination is carried out only for children, adults – according to indications, for example, contacts, as well as those who live in crowded groups, for example, military personnel in barracks.

Photo: Sergey Savostyanov / TASS

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