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Complication of Meningitis

People with meningitis may develop additional problems in the early stages of their illness. These

may require specific treatment, and sometimes indicate severe illness or worse prognosis.

The infection may triggersepsis, asystemic inflammatory response syndromeof fallingbloodpressure,fast heart rate, high or abnormally low temperature andrapid breathing. Very low blood

pressure may occur early, especially but not exclusively in meningococcal illness; this may lead to

insufficient blood supply to other organs

Disseminated intravascular coagulation, the excessive activation ofblood clotting, may cause both

the obstruction ofblood flowto organs and a paradoxical increase of bleeding risk.

In meningococcal disease,gangreneof limbs can occur. Severe meningococcal and pneumococcal

infections may result in hemorrhaging of theadrenal glands, leading toWaterhouse-Friderichsen

syndrome, which is often lethal.

Thebrain tissue may swell, with increasingpressure inside the skulland a risk of swollen brain tissue

causingherniation. This may be noticed by a decreasinglevel of consciousness, loss of thepupillary

light reflex, andabnormal posturing.

Inflammation of the brain tissue may also obstruct the normal flow of CSF around the brain

(hydrocephalus). Seizuresmay occur for various reasons; in children, seizures are common in the

early stages of meningitis (30% of cases) and do not necessarily indicate an underlying cause.

Seizures may result from increased pressure and from areas of inflammation in the brain tissue.

The inflammation of the meninges may lead to abnormalities of thecranial nerves, a group of nervesarising from thebrain stemthat supply the head and neck area and which control eye movement,

facial muscles and hearing, among other functions.

Visual symptoms andhearing lossmay persist after an episode of meningitis.

Other complications may include:

Kidney failure Adrenal gland failure Shock Death

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sepsishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sepsishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sepsishttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Systemic_inflammatory_response_syndromehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Systemic_inflammatory_response_syndromehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Systemic_inflammatory_response_syndromehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blood_pressurehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blood_pressurehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blood_pressurehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blood_pressurehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tachycardiahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tachycardiahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tachycardiahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tachypneahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tachypneahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tachypneahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disseminated_intravascular_coagulationhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disseminated_intravascular_coagulationhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coagulationhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coagulationhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coagulationhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blood_flowhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blood_flowhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blood_flowhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gangrenehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gangrenehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gangrenehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adrenal_glandhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adrenal_glandhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adrenal_glandhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waterhouse-Friderichsen_syndromehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waterhouse-Friderichsen_syndromehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waterhouse-Friderichsen_syndromehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waterhouse-Friderichsen_syndromehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cerebral_edemahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cerebral_edemahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cerebral_edemahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intracranial_pressurehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intracranial_pressurehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intracranial_pressurehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brain_herniationhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brain_herniationhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brain_herniationhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Level_of_consciousnesshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Level_of_consciousnesshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Level_of_consciousnesshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pupillary_light_reflexhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pupillary_light_reflexhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pupillary_light_reflexhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pupillary_light_reflexhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abnormal_posturinghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abnormal_posturinghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abnormal_posturinghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydrocephalushttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydrocephalushttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydrocephalushttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seizurehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seizurehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cranial_nerveshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cranial_nerveshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cranial_nerveshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brain_stemhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brain_stemhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brain_stemhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hearing_losshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hearing_losshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hearing_losshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hearing_losshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brain_stemhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cranial_nerveshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seizurehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hydrocephalushttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Abnormal_posturinghttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pupillary_light_reflexhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pupillary_light_reflexhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Level_of_consciousnesshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brain_herniationhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intracranial_pressurehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cerebral_edemahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waterhouse-Friderichsen_syndromehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waterhouse-Friderichsen_syndromehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adrenal_glandhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gangrenehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blood_flowhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coagulationhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disseminated_intravascular_coagulationhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tachypneahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tachycardiahttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blood_pressurehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blood_pressurehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Systemic_inflammatory_response_syndromehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sepsis

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Prognosis

Untreated, bacterial meningitis is almost always fatal. Viral meningitis, in contrast, tends to resolve

spontaneously and is rarely fatal. With treatment,mortality(risk of death) from bacterial meningitis

depends on the age of the patient and the underlying cause.

Of newborns, 2030% may die from an episode of bacterial meningitis. This risk is much lower in

older children, whose mortality is about 2%, but rises again to about 1937% in adults

Risk of death is predicted by various factors apart from age, such as the pathogen and the time it

takes for the pathogen to be cleared from the cerebrospinal fluid, the severity of the generalized

illness, decreased level of consciousness or abnormally low count of white blood cells in the CSF.

Meningitis caused by H. influenzae and meningococci has a better prognosis compared to cases

caused by group B streptococci, coliforms and S. Pneumonia

In children there are several potential disabilities which may result from damage to the nervous

system including:sensorineural hearing loss,epilepsy,learningand behavioral difficulties, as well as

decreased intelligence.

In adults, 66% of all cases emerge without disability. The main problems aredeafness(in 14%) and

cognitive impairment(in 10%)

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mortality_ratehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mortality_ratehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mortality_ratehttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sensorineural_hearing_losshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sensorineural_hearing_losshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sensorineural_hearing_losshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epilepsyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epilepsyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epilepsyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Learning_disabilityhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Learning_disabilityhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Learning_disabilityhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deafnesshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deafnesshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deafnesshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Developmental_disabilityhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Developmental_disabilityhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Developmental_disabilityhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Deafnesshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Learning_disabilityhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Epilepsyhttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sensorineural_hearing_losshttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mortality_rate