What Is Meningitis?

Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsTypesAcquiring MeningitisSymptomsWhen to Seek Medical CareVaccinesMeningitis TestsTreatment for MeningitisRecoveryComplicationsOutlookNext in Meningitis GuideSymptoms of Meningitis

Table of ContentsView All

View All

Table of Contents

Types

Acquiring Meningitis

Symptoms

When to Seek Medical Care

Vaccines

Meningitis Tests

Treatment for Meningitis

Recovery

Complications

Outlook

Next in Meningitis Guide

Bacterial meningitis can be treated withantibiotics; viral meningitiswon’t benefitfrom antibiotic treatments but usually clears itself. A healthcare provider is needed to diagnose the type of meningitis and appropriate treatment.

Although bacterial meningitis is less common than the viral form, it’s usually significantly more serious and more likely to be deadly.

This article will explore the different types of meningitis, its symptoms, how you get it, when it’s contagious, vaccine options,how meningitis is treated, and when it’s most likely to be fatal.

Meningitis

Types of Meningitis

Meningitis is grouped into these types:

Infants: Signs and Symptoms of Meningitis in BabiesBabies are at high riskof bacterial meningitis and often have symptoms that mimic other illnesses. Parents should be on the lookout for meningitis symptoms such as high fever, stiff neck, rigid extremities, vomiting, diarrhea, or a skin rash with lots of pinpoint-sized dots (petechiae) that are associated with invasive meningococcal disease.

Infants: Signs and Symptoms of Meningitis in Babies

Babies are at high riskof bacterial meningitis and often have symptoms that mimic other illnesses. Parents should be on the lookout for meningitis symptoms such as high fever, stiff neck, rigid extremities, vomiting, diarrhea, or a skin rash with lots of pinpoint-sized dots (petechiae) that are associated with invasive meningococcal disease.

How Do You Get Meningitis?

People more at risk of meningitis include babies, children, older adults, and people with compromised immune systems.

Is Meningitis Contagious?

Although inflammation of the meninges isn’t contagious, specific microorganisms that cause different types of viral or bacterial meningitis can spread easily.Contagiousness depends on the type of meningitis.

Notably, people can be asymptomatic carriers of meningitis-causing bacteria without ever developing meningitis. They don’t get sick but can transmit the bacteria that causes meningococcal disease to others.

Amebic meningitis doesn’t spread via person-to-person contact and isn’t contagious.A warm-water-loving amoeba enters the body through the nose when someone is swimming or using infected water to clean their nasal passages.

How Is Meningitis Spread?

Viral and bacterial meningitis can spread via close contact with saliva, nasal secretions, respiratory droplets, and feces. For example, the bacterium that causes meningococcal meningitis is not as contagious as the common cold, but people in the same household are at elevated risk of getting sick.

Meningitis Symptoms

The most commonmeningitis symptomsinclude:

Less common symptoms include:

When to Seek Medical Attention for Meningitis

Anyone with meningitis symptoms should speak to a healthcare provider and seek medical attention immediately. Time is of the essence when it comes to meningitis. The faster people with bacterial meningitis start receiving appropriate treatment, the less likely they are to die.

What Are Meningitis Vaccines?

Vaccinations canhelp preventboth viral and bacterial meningitis.

Routine viralvaccines and immunizationscan lower the risk of developing viral meningitis. These include vaccines for mumps, measles, and influenza.

In 2020, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reported an increasing number of antibiotic-resistant cases of meningococcal disease in the United States.Vaccines are the best defense against multidrug-resistant organisms (MDROs) that are increasingly associated with fatal cases of bacterial meningitis.

When someone has meningitis symptoms, a lumbar puncture (spinal tap) is often performed to extract CSF and test it todetermine what’s causing inflammation of the meninges.

Other tests used to determine what’s causing someone’s meningitis symptoms include:

Different types of meningitisrequire different treatments. For example, oral antibiotics or intravenous antimicrobial agents (IV antibiotics) administered at a hospital are the first-line treatment for bacterial meningitis.Corticosteroids may be given to reduce inflammation, and anticonvulsants may be given to prevent seizures.

Intravenous antifungal agents may be used for fungal meningitis, such as cryptococcal meningitis.After IV treatment, a course of oral antifungal medications is given. For people with weak immune systems, treatment may be longer. One or more lumbar punctures may be done to check that the fungal culture is negative.

Always speak to a healthcare provider and seek medical attention at the first sign of meningitis symptoms. The sooner they determine if you have meningitis and, if so, what type, the faster you can start appropriate treatment.

Recovering From Meningitis

Most people make a full recovery from mild cases of meningitis.However, more severe cases can cause long-term disabilities or subsequent medical problems.It is important to continue any antibiotic, antiviral, or antifungal treatment for as long as recommended.

Complications of Meningitis

About 1 in 5 people with bacterial meningitis experience complications, including:

Outlook for Meningitis

Vaccination to prevent viral and bacterial infections that can lead to meningitis has significantly reduced the incidence of some types of meningitis.

Summary

Antibiotics don’t work against viruses and can’t help people with viral meningitis. Luckily, most people with robust immune systems recover from viral meningitis without treatment. Antibiotics are used to treat bacterial meningitis.

Meningococcal vaccines and other vaccines against viruses and bacteria are everybody’s best defense against contracting meningitis.

27 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Dittrich T, Marsch S, Egli A, et al.Predictors of infectious meningitis or encephalitis: the yield of cerebrospinal fluid in a cross-sectional study.BMC Infect Dis. 2020;20(1):304. doi:10.1186/s12879-020-05022-6Block N, Naucler P, Wagner P, Morfeldt E, Henriques‐Normark B.Bacterial meningitis: aetiology, risk factors, disease trends and severe sequelae during 50 years in Sweden.J Intern Med. 2022;292(2):350-364. doi:10.1111/joim.13488Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Viral meningitis.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Bacterial meningitis.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Meningitis.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Fungal meningitis.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Parasitic meningitis.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Amebic meningitis.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Non-infectious meningitis.Khalessi N, Afsharkhas L.Neonatal meningitis: risk factors, causes, and neurologic complications.Iran J Child Neurol. 2014;8(4):46-50.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Group settings as a risk factor.Balmer P, Burman C, Serra L, York LJ.Impact of meningococcal vaccination on carriage and disease transmission: A review of the literature.Human Vaccines & Immunotherapeutics. 2018;14(5):1118-1130. doi:10.1080/21645515.2018.1454570Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Naegleria fowleri — primary amebic meningoencephalitis (PAM) — amebic encephalitis.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Meningococcal disease: causes and how it spreads.KidsHealth from Nemours.Meningitis (for parents).Guiddir T, Gros M, Hong E, et al.Unusual initial abdominal presentations of invasive meningococcal disease.Clinical Infectious Diseases. 2018;67(8):1220-1227. doi:10.1093/cid/ciy257National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke.Meningitis.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Meningococcal vaccinationMorbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR).Detection of Ciprofloxacin-Resistant, β-Lactamase–Producing Neisseria meningitidis Serogroup Y Isolates — United States, 2019–2020.Tumani H, Petereit HF, Gerritzen A, et al.S1 guidelines “lumbar puncture and cerebrospinal fluid analysis” (abridged and translated version).Neurol Res Pract. 2020;2(1):8. doi:10.1186/s42466-020-0051-zBahr NC, Boulware DR.Methods of rapid diagnosis for the etiology of meningitis in adults.Biomarkers in Medicine. 2014;8(9):1085-1103. doi:10.2217/bmm.14.67Michigan Medicine.Guideline for treatment of bacterial meningitis in adults.Abassi M, Boulware DR, Rhein J.Cryptococcal meningitis: diagnosis and management update.Curr Trop Med Rep. 2015;2(2):90-99. doi:10.1007/s40475-015-0046-ySchiess N, Groce NE, Dua T.The impact and burden of neurological sequelae following bacterial meningitis: a narrative review.Microorganisms. 2021;9(5):900. doi:10.3390/microorganisms9050900World Health Organization.Meningitis.Lécuyer H, Virion Z, Barnier JP, et al.An ADAM-10 dependent EPCR shedding links meningococcal interaction with endothelial cells to purpura fulminans. Luo ZQ, ed.PLoS Pathog. 2018;14(4):e1006981. doi:10.1371/journal.ppat.1006981Sadarangani M, Scheifele DW, Halperin SA, et al.Outcomes of invasive meningococcal disease in adults and children in Canada between 2002 and 2011: a prospective cohort study.Clinical Infectious Diseases. 2015;60(8):e27-e35. doi:10.1093/cid/civ028

27 Sources

Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Dittrich T, Marsch S, Egli A, et al.Predictors of infectious meningitis or encephalitis: the yield of cerebrospinal fluid in a cross-sectional study.BMC Infect Dis. 2020;20(1):304. doi:10.1186/s12879-020-05022-6Block N, Naucler P, Wagner P, Morfeldt E, Henriques‐Normark B.Bacterial meningitis: aetiology, risk factors, disease trends and severe sequelae during 50 years in Sweden.J Intern Med. 2022;292(2):350-364. doi:10.1111/joim.13488Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Viral meningitis.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Bacterial meningitis.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Meningitis.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Fungal meningitis.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Parasitic meningitis.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Amebic meningitis.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Non-infectious meningitis.Khalessi N, Afsharkhas L.Neonatal meningitis: risk factors, causes, and neurologic complications.Iran J Child Neurol. 2014;8(4):46-50.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Group settings as a risk factor.Balmer P, Burman C, Serra L, York LJ.Impact of meningococcal vaccination on carriage and disease transmission: A review of the literature.Human Vaccines & Immunotherapeutics. 2018;14(5):1118-1130. doi:10.1080/21645515.2018.1454570Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Naegleria fowleri — primary amebic meningoencephalitis (PAM) — amebic encephalitis.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Meningococcal disease: causes and how it spreads.KidsHealth from Nemours.Meningitis (for parents).Guiddir T, Gros M, Hong E, et al.Unusual initial abdominal presentations of invasive meningococcal disease.Clinical Infectious Diseases. 2018;67(8):1220-1227. doi:10.1093/cid/ciy257National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke.Meningitis.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Meningococcal vaccinationMorbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR).Detection of Ciprofloxacin-Resistant, β-Lactamase–Producing Neisseria meningitidis Serogroup Y Isolates — United States, 2019–2020.Tumani H, Petereit HF, Gerritzen A, et al.S1 guidelines “lumbar puncture and cerebrospinal fluid analysis” (abridged and translated version).Neurol Res Pract. 2020;2(1):8. doi:10.1186/s42466-020-0051-zBahr NC, Boulware DR.Methods of rapid diagnosis for the etiology of meningitis in adults.Biomarkers in Medicine. 2014;8(9):1085-1103. doi:10.2217/bmm.14.67Michigan Medicine.Guideline for treatment of bacterial meningitis in adults.Abassi M, Boulware DR, Rhein J.Cryptococcal meningitis: diagnosis and management update.Curr Trop Med Rep. 2015;2(2):90-99. doi:10.1007/s40475-015-0046-ySchiess N, Groce NE, Dua T.The impact and burden of neurological sequelae following bacterial meningitis: a narrative review.Microorganisms. 2021;9(5):900. doi:10.3390/microorganisms9050900World Health Organization.Meningitis.Lécuyer H, Virion Z, Barnier JP, et al.An ADAM-10 dependent EPCR shedding links meningococcal interaction with endothelial cells to purpura fulminans. Luo ZQ, ed.PLoS Pathog. 2018;14(4):e1006981. doi:10.1371/journal.ppat.1006981Sadarangani M, Scheifele DW, Halperin SA, et al.Outcomes of invasive meningococcal disease in adults and children in Canada between 2002 and 2011: a prospective cohort study.Clinical Infectious Diseases. 2015;60(8):e27-e35. doi:10.1093/cid/civ028

Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.

Dittrich T, Marsch S, Egli A, et al.Predictors of infectious meningitis or encephalitis: the yield of cerebrospinal fluid in a cross-sectional study.BMC Infect Dis. 2020;20(1):304. doi:10.1186/s12879-020-05022-6Block N, Naucler P, Wagner P, Morfeldt E, Henriques‐Normark B.Bacterial meningitis: aetiology, risk factors, disease trends and severe sequelae during 50 years in Sweden.J Intern Med. 2022;292(2):350-364. doi:10.1111/joim.13488Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Viral meningitis.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Bacterial meningitis.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Meningitis.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Fungal meningitis.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Parasitic meningitis.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Amebic meningitis.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Non-infectious meningitis.Khalessi N, Afsharkhas L.Neonatal meningitis: risk factors, causes, and neurologic complications.Iran J Child Neurol. 2014;8(4):46-50.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Group settings as a risk factor.Balmer P, Burman C, Serra L, York LJ.Impact of meningococcal vaccination on carriage and disease transmission: A review of the literature.Human Vaccines & Immunotherapeutics. 2018;14(5):1118-1130. doi:10.1080/21645515.2018.1454570Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Naegleria fowleri — primary amebic meningoencephalitis (PAM) — amebic encephalitis.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Meningococcal disease: causes and how it spreads.KidsHealth from Nemours.Meningitis (for parents).Guiddir T, Gros M, Hong E, et al.Unusual initial abdominal presentations of invasive meningococcal disease.Clinical Infectious Diseases. 2018;67(8):1220-1227. doi:10.1093/cid/ciy257National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke.Meningitis.Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Meningococcal vaccinationMorbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR).Detection of Ciprofloxacin-Resistant, β-Lactamase–Producing Neisseria meningitidis Serogroup Y Isolates — United States, 2019–2020.Tumani H, Petereit HF, Gerritzen A, et al.S1 guidelines “lumbar puncture and cerebrospinal fluid analysis” (abridged and translated version).Neurol Res Pract. 2020;2(1):8. doi:10.1186/s42466-020-0051-zBahr NC, Boulware DR.Methods of rapid diagnosis for the etiology of meningitis in adults.Biomarkers in Medicine. 2014;8(9):1085-1103. doi:10.2217/bmm.14.67Michigan Medicine.Guideline for treatment of bacterial meningitis in adults.Abassi M, Boulware DR, Rhein J.Cryptococcal meningitis: diagnosis and management update.Curr Trop Med Rep. 2015;2(2):90-99. doi:10.1007/s40475-015-0046-ySchiess N, Groce NE, Dua T.The impact and burden of neurological sequelae following bacterial meningitis: a narrative review.Microorganisms. 2021;9(5):900. doi:10.3390/microorganisms9050900World Health Organization.Meningitis.Lécuyer H, Virion Z, Barnier JP, et al.An ADAM-10 dependent EPCR shedding links meningococcal interaction with endothelial cells to purpura fulminans. Luo ZQ, ed.PLoS Pathog. 2018;14(4):e1006981. doi:10.1371/journal.ppat.1006981Sadarangani M, Scheifele DW, Halperin SA, et al.Outcomes of invasive meningococcal disease in adults and children in Canada between 2002 and 2011: a prospective cohort study.Clinical Infectious Diseases. 2015;60(8):e27-e35. doi:10.1093/cid/civ028

Dittrich T, Marsch S, Egli A, et al.Predictors of infectious meningitis or encephalitis: the yield of cerebrospinal fluid in a cross-sectional study.BMC Infect Dis. 2020;20(1):304. doi:10.1186/s12879-020-05022-6

Block N, Naucler P, Wagner P, Morfeldt E, Henriques‐Normark B.Bacterial meningitis: aetiology, risk factors, disease trends and severe sequelae during 50 years in Sweden.J Intern Med. 2022;292(2):350-364. doi:10.1111/joim.13488

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Viral meningitis.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Bacterial meningitis.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Meningitis.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Fungal meningitis.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Parasitic meningitis.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Amebic meningitis.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Non-infectious meningitis.

Khalessi N, Afsharkhas L.Neonatal meningitis: risk factors, causes, and neurologic complications.Iran J Child Neurol. 2014;8(4):46-50.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Group settings as a risk factor.

Balmer P, Burman C, Serra L, York LJ.Impact of meningococcal vaccination on carriage and disease transmission: A review of the literature.Human Vaccines & Immunotherapeutics. 2018;14(5):1118-1130. doi:10.1080/21645515.2018.1454570

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Naegleria fowleri — primary amebic meningoencephalitis (PAM) — amebic encephalitis.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Meningococcal disease: causes and how it spreads.

KidsHealth from Nemours.Meningitis (for parents).

Guiddir T, Gros M, Hong E, et al.Unusual initial abdominal presentations of invasive meningococcal disease.Clinical Infectious Diseases. 2018;67(8):1220-1227. doi:10.1093/cid/ciy257

National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke.Meningitis.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.Meningococcal vaccination

Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR).Detection of Ciprofloxacin-Resistant, β-Lactamase–Producing Neisseria meningitidis Serogroup Y Isolates — United States, 2019–2020.

Tumani H, Petereit HF, Gerritzen A, et al.S1 guidelines “lumbar puncture and cerebrospinal fluid analysis” (abridged and translated version).Neurol Res Pract. 2020;2(1):8. doi:10.1186/s42466-020-0051-z

Bahr NC, Boulware DR.Methods of rapid diagnosis for the etiology of meningitis in adults.Biomarkers in Medicine. 2014;8(9):1085-1103. doi:10.2217/bmm.14.67

Michigan Medicine.Guideline for treatment of bacterial meningitis in adults.

Abassi M, Boulware DR, Rhein J.Cryptococcal meningitis: diagnosis and management update.Curr Trop Med Rep. 2015;2(2):90-99. doi:10.1007/s40475-015-0046-y

Schiess N, Groce NE, Dua T.The impact and burden of neurological sequelae following bacterial meningitis: a narrative review.Microorganisms. 2021;9(5):900. doi:10.3390/microorganisms9050900

World Health Organization.Meningitis.

Lécuyer H, Virion Z, Barnier JP, et al.An ADAM-10 dependent EPCR shedding links meningococcal interaction with endothelial cells to purpura fulminans. Luo ZQ, ed.PLoS Pathog. 2018;14(4):e1006981. doi:10.1371/journal.ppat.1006981

Sadarangani M, Scheifele DW, Halperin SA, et al.Outcomes of invasive meningococcal disease in adults and children in Canada between 2002 and 2011: a prospective cohort study.Clinical Infectious Diseases. 2015;60(8):e27-e35. doi:10.1093/cid/civ028

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