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Query: UMLS:C0085437 (bacterial meningitis)
 4,038 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

We review the 257 patients hospitalized for meningitis in the Cantonal University Hospital, Geneva between 1st January 1980 and 31st December 1986. 104 patients had acute bacterial meningitis (32 Str. pneumoniae, 21 N. meningitidis, 10 Listeria monocytogenes, 8 streptococci, 5 H. influenzae, 5 staphylococci, 4 gram negative bacilli and 19 without identified bacteria), 124 patients had viral meningitis and 29 meningitis of other etiologies (6 tuberculous meningitis, 2 fungal meningitis, 1 leptospiral meningitis, 5 neoplastic meningitis--one already counted because of a meningitis due to Staph. epidermidis--2 meningitis consecutive to a meningeal irritation, 4 already treated meningitis of undetermined etiology, 2 chronic meningitis and 8 meningoencephalitis). The total mortality was 14.4%. It was zero in viral meningitis and 28% in bacterial meningitis (47% in cases of Str. pneumoniae, 5% in cases of N. meningitidis, 20% in cases of Listeria monocytogenes, 38% in cases of streptococci, 0% in cases of H. influenzae, 60% in cases of staphylococci, 50% in cases of gram negative bacilli, 16% in cases of unidentified bacteria). The striking difference in mortality emphasizes the importance of recognizing a bacterial etiology in order to institute antibiotic therapy as soon as possible. The delay between admission and lumbar puncture averaged 15 hours (range 0.25-96 h) in patients with acute bacterial meningitis and 6.3 hours (0.5-80 h) in patients with viral meningitis. The delay between admission and institution of the antibiotics averaged 5.3 hours (1-48 h) in cases of acute bacterial meningitis and 4.8 hours (0.5-48 h) in cases of viral meningitis. A better clinical workup may provide a reliable diagnosis sooner. In the collective with bacterial and viral meningitis headaches, fever or nuchal rigidity were present in over 80% of the cases. The following features were significantly associated with a bacterial etiology: age over 30 years, alcoholism, concomitant neoplasm, cough, coma, pulmonary rales, new neurological signs or petechia. At least one of these 4 latter signs was present in more than 70% of the cases with acute bacterial meningitis compared to 6% in cases of viral meningitis. Thus the clinical presentation alone serves to recognize the meningitis and to differentiate between a bacterial or viral etiology, thus permitting an immediate therapeutic decision without waiting for complementary investigations. The 104 patients with acute bacterial meningitis were treated with antibiotics: 60 with penicillin, 17 with ampicillin and 26 with other antibiotics; one case did not receive antibiotics. More than the half of the cases with viral meningitis have got antibiotics (52%).
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PMID:[Meningitis in adults in Geneva. Review of 257 cases]. 185 79

Based on a review of medical records, we have analysed the outcome after bacterial meningitis among 875 patients admitted during the period 1966-1976. The outcome was evaluated not only by fatality during admission or within 4 weeks after discharge, but also by neurological sequelae at the time of discharge. These two types of outcome were determined and compared in subgroups of patients categorised according to a number of features of prognostic significance. This has allowed us to quantify the clinical conditions and features with regard to the severity of the prognosis. In most subgroups of patients, the frequencies of fatality and sequelae followed the same patterns: High frequencies were associated with pneumococcal meningitis, rare bacterial aetiologies, increasing age, affected consciousness on admission, pneumonia on admission, convulsions during admission, and respiratory problems during admission. For some prognostic features, a correlation could be established with high sequelae rates, but not with high fatality rates. This was the case with increased duration of disease symptoms before admission, with alcoholism and with previous head trauma. Thus, this correlation revealed the importance of early hospitalisation. We find that the analysis of sequelae not only supports, but also adds important prognostic information to the results obtained by an analysis of fatality itself in this large retrospective clinical study.
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PMID:Neurological sequelae and fatality as prognostic measures in 875 cases of bacterial meningitis. 334 49

A case of severe bacterial meningitis complicated by alcoholism, lobar pneumonia and coma, is described. Although triple antibiotic therapy had been ineffective, the patient made a rapid and complete recovery when treated with cefotaxime alone.
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PMID:Successful treatment of meningitis with cefotaxime in an adult. 631 99

Bacterial meningitis remains a relatively common disease worldwide (40,000 cases per year in the United States) and the mortality rate has not improved in over 30 years. Certain host factors increase the risk of acquiring meningitis and include: age (increased at extremes of life), male sex, low socioeconomic status (crowding), black race, recent nasopharyngeal carriage of a virulent strain, absence of specific bactericidal antibody, maternal factors at birth (neonatal disease), various immunologic defects (neonates, antibody or terminal complement component deficiency, splenectomy, and immunosuppression including the acquired immune deficiency syndrome), and certain chronic diseases (such as alcoholism, cirrhosis, and diabetes mellitus). Bacterial meningitis represents an infection in an area of impaired host resistance. The blood-brain barrier is a major protective mechanism for the central nervous system against circulating bacteria. However, once bacteria gain entry into the subarachnoid space, host defenses are inadequate. Polymorphonuclear leukocytes are at a disadvantage in the fluid medium of the cerebrospinal fluid and surface phagocytosis is inefficient. In addition, antibody and complement concentrations are low (or absent) in purulent cerebrospinal fluid early in the disease course. Functional opsonic and bactericidal activity is lacking; therefore, efficient phagocytosis of encapsulated meningeal pathogens is limited. The result is huge population densities (often 10(7) to 10(8) cfu per milliliter) of bacteria in cerebrospinal fluid. This finding suggests that bactericidal antibiotics with cerebrospinal fluid concentrations much greater than the minimal bacterial concentration of the pathogen are optimal for therapy of meningitis; this principle has been shown in experimental animal models and supported by therapeutic studies in human subjects.
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PMID:Bacterial meningitis in the patient at risk: intrinsic risk factors and host defense mechanisms. 637 70

The usefulness of the CSF lactate concentration in the diagnosis of bacterial meningitis was studied in 109 adults and children with a variety of infectious and neurologic diseases. A positive correlation was found between elevated lactate levels and the presence of leukocytes in the CSF. Elevations of the CSF lactate concentration with concomitantly negative Gram's stains and cultures were found in patients with infections at anatomic sites other than the CNS, accidental or neurosurgical head trauma, subarachnoid hemorrhage, and seizures due to alcoholism. When performed routinely on CSF, the positive predictive value was 31%, indicating that a diagnosis other than bacterial meningitis is more likely. We conclude that the CSF lactate concentration does not contribute to the diagnosis in children or adults with suspected meningitis.
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PMID:CSF lactate in diseases of the CNS. 684 11

Two cases of acute bacterial meningitis occurred with an absent CSF WBC response. To determine the incidence and clinical characteristics of such patients, 50 consecutive cases of meningitis were reviewed retrospectively. In addition to the two initially noted cases, five additional cases were found. In the seven cases, there were six or fewer cells, but bacteria were detected in the CSF. A distinctive clinical and laboratory syndrome emerged. All seven patients were either old or had Hodgkin's disease or severe alcoholism. All patients had evidence of an overwhelming infection with confusion or nuchal rigidity. As compared with the remaining 45 patients with meningitis and CSF pleocytosis, no fever (less than 38 degrees C), a lower peripheral WBC count, and near-normal CSF glucose and protein concentrations were common. Organisms involved were EScherichia coli in three patients, Pneumococcus in three patients, and mixed anaerobes in patient. A fatal outcome ensued in six of seven patients. Despite the correct choice of an antibacterial agent, doses were late and suboptimal for meningitis. This syndrome is surprisingly common in host-defective cases, has an ominous prognosis, and must be treated expectantly with antimicrobial agents that enter the CSF.
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PMID:Bacterial meningitis in the absence of CSF pleocytosis. 702 10

Citrobacter meningitis is an uncommon infection of neonates and young children. It is rarely seen in adults. We describe a 46-year-old man with a mixed bacterial meningitis caused by C. diversus and Klebsiella oxytoca and a 64-year-old woman with C. freundii meningitis. Review of the English-language literature revealed only 2 adult patients with C. diversus meningitis and another 2, with C. freundii meningitis. The ages of these 6 aforementioned patients ranged from 31 to 84 years. Multiple facial fractures, neurosurgical procedures, alcoholism and diabetes mellitus were predisposing conditions. Among the 5 patients whose outcome was known, antibiotic therapy was successful in 4 but failed in 1. This study emphasizes that almost any of the gram-negative bacilli can cause serious infection of the central nervous system in adults in the proper setting.
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PMID:Citrobacter meningitis in adults. 818 83

A middle-aged aboriginal man with a history of alcoholism and gastrectomy was diagnosed as having bacterial meningoencephalitis based on the typical clinical manifestations, laboratory findings, and treatment responses. During the recovery stage, he developed consciousness disturbance, seizures, severe diarrhea, and respiratory failure that led us to search for other possibility of the diagnosis. The eosinophilia and repeated stool examinations helped us to make the diagnosis of disseminated strongyloidiasis. In this patient the initial bacterial meningitis was followed by S. stercoralis hyperinfection. Despite treatment with strong antimicrobial agents, the patient died. This case could serve as a reminder to physicians to be alert for strongyloidiasis superimposed on bacterial meningitis.
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PMID:Fatal meningoencephalitis caused by disseminated strongyloidiasis. 1583 86

Survivors of meningitis often complain about neurological and neuropsychological consequences. In this study, the extent of these sequelae was quantified and correlated to MRI findings. Neurological, neuropsychological and neuroradiological examinations were performed with adult patients younger than 70 years, 1-12 years after recovery from bacterial meningitis (BM; n = 59), or from viral meningitis (VM; n = 59). Patients with other potential causes for neuropsychological deficits (e.g. alcoholism) were carefully excluded. Patients were compared to 30 healthy subjects adjusted for age, gender and length of school education. With the exception of attention functions, both patient groups showed more frequently pathological results than the control group for all domains examined. Applying an overall cognitive sum score, patients after BM did not differ significantly in their performance from patients after VM. Separate analyses of various cognitive domains, however, revealed a higher rate of persistent disturbances in short-term and working memory after BM than after VM. Moreover, patients after BM exhibited greater impairment of executive functions. Associative learning of verbal material was also reduced. These deficits could not be ascribed to impaired alertness functions or decreased motivation in BM patients. Applying a logistic regression model, the neuropsychological outcome was related to the neurological outcome. Patients with a Glasgow Outcome Scale (GOS) of <5 had more frequently impaired test results for non-verbal learning and memory. GOS was also correlated with performance in executive functions. Brain volume was lower and ventricular volume was higher in the bacterial than in the VM group, and cerebral volume and the amount of white matter lesions of patients after BM were negatively correlated with short-term and working memory. In conclusion, patients after both BM and VM with favourable outcome showed affected learning and memory functions. More patients after BM than after VM displayed pathological short-term and working memory. BM resulted in poorer performance in executive functions, language, short-term memory and verbal learning/memory tests. As a result of neurological and neuropsychological sequelae, BM with a GOS > or = 4 led to decreased activities of daily living but only a minority of patients were disabled in a way that social functions were affected. The extent of neuropsychological sequelae of BM might have been overestimated in earlier studies which often had not been controlled for comorbidity factors such as alcoholism.
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PMID:Neuropsychological sequelae of bacterial and viral meningitis. 1662 61

We report a case of a 49-year-old male with a history of chronic alcoholism and evidence of a pancreatic pseudocyst on CT scanning. He presented with a 3-days history of fever, loss of appetite and upper abdominal pain. Blood cultures grew Klebsiella pneumoniae and he improved clinically with a seven-day course of intravenous co-amoxiclav and metronidazole. Two weeks later he was readmitted to hospital with impaired consciousness and septic shock, and died three days later in intensive care. Post mortem examination revealed bacterial meningitis and an infected pancreatic pseudocyst. Klebsiella pneumoniae was isolated from the pancreas and meninges.
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PMID:Community-acquired Klebsiella pneumoniae meningitis in an alcoholic patient with an infected pancreatic pseudocyst; a case report and review of literature. 1796 81


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