How dangerous is meningitis?

According to Dr. Dong Phu Khiem, Deputy Head of the Intensive Care Department, Central Hospital for Tropical Diseases, meningitis is one of the central nervous system infections, with a variety of causes such as bacteria, viruses, fungi, etc.

MeningitisThere are many forms, including acute, longer-term, and chronic disease.

Patients with acute meningitis have common symptoms of fever, headache, and nausea. Patients may also have other symptoms such as stiff neck, photophobia, and signs of brain dysfunction (drowsiness, confusion, coma)...

There are many causes of the disease, depending on the patient's medical history. For example, the patient has a traumatic brain injury, a skull fracture, which makes it easy for bacteria to enter; the patient has chronic otitis media, bacteria from the ear spread to the brain... Another very common cause is eating bacteria such as streptococcus suis, the bacteria will travel from the bloodstream to the brain.

Dr. Khiem emphasized that acute meningitis is a “very dangerous” disease. If not diagnosed and treated early, the patient will certainly not survive. On the contrary, if treated promptly and the patient is healthy and has no underlying diseases, the chance of recovery is up to 90%.

Photo illustration: Family First - Urgent Care

“In some cases, the body is too weak or has an underlying disease, so the response to treatment is often poor. The patient may survive, but there will be many sequelae such as deep coma, complete dependence on a ventilator, hemiplegia, epilepsy, convulsions, etc. The sequelae have different levels, depending on the cause, level of meningitis, the patient's constitution and response,” said Dr. Khiem.

The Central Hospital for Tropical Diseases has treated many people with acute meningitis. This is also one of the three main diseases related to infection in severe patients, requiring intensive care at this unit.

The Deputy Head of the Intensive Care Unit, Central Hospital for Tropical Diseases, shared that the most common cause of meningitis in the community in Vietnam is Streptococcus suis, accounting for 60% of all cases.

Therefore, to prevent disease, people should be careful not to eat blood pudding; do not participate in processing or slaughtering sick or dead pigs. For those who work in pig slaughtering, Dr. Khiem recommends that protective measures and labor protection equipment be used when working.

In addition, medical experts also warn that other preventive measures such as food safety and environmental hygiene should be taken to prevent meningitis.