General Medical Information

Meningitis

Frank E. Lucente
Samir Shah
Roger Kula

Meningitis is the most common intracranial infection. The pia mater and arachnoid are infected. Headache, lethargy, and irritability are early signs. Other signs of meningitis are nuchal rigidity, limited flexion of the legs, altered mental status, and fever. Diagnosis is made by means of analysis of cerebrospinal fluid, which shows pleocytosis (more than 1,000, mostly polymorphonuclear, leukocytes), elevated protein level, and decreased glucose level. Antibiotic therapy should be guided by the cerebrospinal fluid culture results.