Meningitis in adolescents. Symptoms, how to recognize, treatment, consequences

Meningitis is a serious medical condition, in which the infection enters the lining of the brain and spinal cord. The first symptoms in adolescents and adults are similar to those of a common cold and flu. It is important not to engage in self-treatment, but to go to the hospital to see a therapist.

A comprehensive examination will allow the doctor to establish a diagnosis and select the most effective treatment based on the results obtained. Lack of therapy will lead to serious complications, including death.

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Given the provoking source of pathological processes, meningitis in adolescents is classified according to the following types:

Name	Description
Viral	The disease is provoked by pathologies such as rubella, measles, smallpox or flu.
Bacterial	The causative agents of this meningitis are pathogens (staphylococcus, meningococcus, Haemophilus influenzae, salmonella).
Fungal	A rare type of meningitis that develops against the background of increased reproduction of Candida fungi. Pathological processes progress due to weak immunity, endocrine disorders in the human body. The same goes for autoimmune disorders.
Parasitic	Meningitis is a consequence of parasitic infection of the human body (amoeba, toxoplasmosis).

There is also purulent and serous meningitis. The disease that appeared after the infection entered the human body is called primary. This applies to pathogenic bacteria, fungi, parasites.

Meningitis, which appeared as a result of a previous illness, is called secondary. The infection penetrates the lining of the spinal cord and brain, affecting the tissues of the organ. We are talking about mumps, sinusitis or sinusitis.

Stages and degrees

Along the way, meningitis in adolescents is classified into the following stages:

Name	Description
Lightning fast	The symptomatology of the disease is developing rapidly. In some situations, patients require surgery, without which there is a high probability of death of the patient.
Sharp	The patient's condition is serious, symptoms develop quickly, and immediate treatment must be started.
Sluggish	Mild symptoms are accompanied by a tuberculous form of meningitis or with HIV infection.
Chronic	The disease develops gradually, the symptoms persist for a long time. Chronic meningitis in most cases affects the central nervous system of a person.

It is important to contact a therapist in a timely manner, who, if meningitis is suspected, will appoint a consultation with an infectious disease specialist or neurologist. The disease is dangerous and requires a thorough examination, after which an effective therapy regimen is selected for patients.

Symptoms

The symptoms of meningitis in adolescents are in most cases the same, regardless of the etiology of pathological processes. They will help the infectious disease doctor or neuropathologist determine the stage of development of the disease and choose the most effective treatment.

Name	Description
Fever	Sudden sign of illness. The person is cold and he is trembling. High temperatures are hard to bring down.
Strong headache	The painful sensations are acute and unbearable. Against their background, stiffness appears in the neck, but the patient does not notice this due to severe headache.
Double in the eyes	It is difficult for patients to focus their vision.
Abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting	Against the background of these clinical signs, appetite worsens in a person with meningitis.
Increased sensitivity to light	The developing pathological processes provoke the appearance of tears in a teenager, as a reaction to bright light. At the same time, nausea and headache intensify.
Stiff neck muscles	A patient with meningitis takes a specific posture. Lies on one side, head thrown back, knees bent.
Brudzinsky's syndrome	The teenager cannot straighten his legs. When the head is tilted forward, the patient's lower limbs are bent. It is impossible to unbend and return them to their original position.
Kernig's Syndrome	A clinical sign of meningitis, in which it is impossible to straighten the leg if it is raised 90 °.
Skin rashes	A simple test can help identify a specific meningitis rash in a teenager. It is necessary to press the glass against the affected area. If the rash turns pale, then it is not meningitis. Otherwise, it is necessary to urgently go to the hospital and undergo a comprehensive examination.

When these symptoms appear, it is important to quickly call an ambulance. Provide the patient with maximum rest and dim the lights in the room. When confirming the diagnosis, treatment is recommended to be carried out in a hospital so that the patient is always under the supervision of an infectious disease specialist.

Reasons for the appearance

Meningitis in adolescents (symptoms cannot be ignored, since the disease is dangerous for its complications for human life) provokes inflammation of the lining of the brain and spinal cord.

The causative agents of pathological processes are pathogenic bacteria, fungi, which are transmitted in the following ways:

Name	Description
Airborne	Infection occurs when communicating with a sick person or a carrier of the virus.
Contact and household	Infection of the human body occurs during the use of common objects (toys, dishes).
Food	A common cause of infection in the body is the consumption of dirty vegetables and fruits.
Water	The causative agents of the disease enter the human body when he swims in a dirty pool or open water body.

Meningitis is more often encountered by people with weak immunity or developing chronic diseases. The lack of timely therapy will lead to serious consequences, against which the death of a teenager is possible.

Bad habits, in particular alcohol abuse, are also provoking factors. The same applies to craniocerebral trauma, immunodeficiency disorders, neurosurgical surgery.

Diagnostics

A comprehensive examination and treatment of a sick patient is carried out by an infectious disease doctor or neuropathologist. The specialist conducts an examination, takes into account human complaints and selects the most informative tests to obtain accurate information. The results will help to draw up a treatment regimen for pathology.

Meningitis in adolescents (early symptoms of inflammation will help you go to the hospital in a timely manner) will allow you to diagnose the following examination methods:

Name	Description
Puncture	For research, cerebrospinal fluid is taken from the patient. The diagnostic method allows you to establish an accurate diagnosis and determine the type of disease.
Cytological studies	To diagnose meningitis, CSF is taken from the patient. The presence of an inflammatory process in the lining of the brain is evidenced by a high level of lymphocytes.
X-ray	Diagnostic methods that allow you to determine the degree and nature of the developing inflammatory process.
Computed tomography (CT)
Immunological analysis	Antibodies and viral antigens are found in the patient's blood. A polymerase chain reaction (PCR) or enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) is performed.
Nasal swab, pharyngeal swab	The study helps professionals identify the pathogenic pathogens of meningitis in adolescents.

It is important to differentiate the disease, since many pathologies are accompanied by similar clinical signs.

When to see a doctor

It is recommended that patients visit an infectious disease specialist as soon as the first symptoms of the disease appear. Progressive pathological processes may require consultation with a neurologist. Timely examination, diagnosis and proper treatment will help prevent serious complications of meningitis in adolescents, including death.

Prophylaxis

Simple recommendations of doctors, which are important to remember, help to prevent the disease:

1. To temper the body, lead a healthy lifestyle.
2. Maintain immunity.
3. Walk more in the fresh air.
4. Ventilate the room and perform wet cleaning.
5. Treatment of viral diseases that are provoking should be carried out after consulting a doctor, observing all appointments.
6. It is important to follow simple hygiene rules.
7. To visit an infectious disease doctor for preventive purposes, if there are relatives in the family with such a diagnosis.
8. Exercise.
9. Eat correctly and rationally.

Prevention of meningitis is also vaccination against diseases that provoke an inflammatory process in the lining of the brain and spinal cord. During epidemics of viral pathologies, it is recommended to avoid places where a large number of people gather.

Treatment methods

Most patients with meningitis are treated in an inpatient setting. This circumstance will allow the infectious disease doctor to monitor the patient's condition and take emergency measures if the patient's health deteriorates. Medicines are used to eliminate the main source of infection and stop the symptoms of the disease.

Medications

Medicines are selected by the doctor after a complete and thorough examination of the patient. The specialist takes into account the area of ​​development of pathological processes and the individual state of a person.

Meningitis in adolescents (symptoms will help the doctor determine the stage and extent of the disease beforehand) provides for the use of the following drugs:

Drug group	Name	Application
Antibacterial drugs	Ceftriaxone, Meronem	The drugs are used for bacterial meningitis. Adults are prescribed 1-2 g 1 time per day. The duration of treatment is 4-14 days.
Diuretics	Furosemide, Diakarb	Medicines prevent cerebral edema. The tablets are taken orally before meals, without chewing and drinking plenty of water. The recommended adult dosage is 10-30 mg 2-3 times a day. The course of treatment is selected by the doctor, taking into account the patient's condition.
Antifungal medicines	Flucosan, Mycosist	The medicine is taken orally or administered intravenously. The adult dosage is 50-400 mg once a day, taking into account the patient's condition.
Antiviral medicines	Interferon, Acyclovir	The drugs are used when viral meningitis is diagnosed. The tablets are taken orally with food or after a meal. Adults are prescribed 200 mg 5 times a day. The time interval between doses should not be less than 4 hours. The course of therapy lasts 5-10 days.
Sedatives	Seduxen, Relanium	Medicines help relieve seizures and stop panic attacks. The initial dosage for an adult is 2.5-5 g 1-2 times a day. It is gradually increased to 5-10 g.
Antipyretic	Ibuprofen, Paracetamol	Medications reduce fever, fever, and pain. The tablets are taken orally with water during meals or after meals. The recommended dosage for an adult is 1200-1800 mg, divided into 3 doses.

With meningitis, which is provoked by a tubercle bacillus, the patient is given injections with antibacterial drugs. Injections are given to the spinal cord.

Traditional methods

Complex therapy allows the use of prescriptions of healers and healers for meningitis in adolescents, but strictly after consultation with the attending physician. Many folk remedies can provoke an individual reaction or aggravate the development of pathological processes. Some recipes will not help cure meningitis; the disease requires complex treatment.

Effective folk remedies:

Name	Recipe	Application
Poppy infusion	Chopped poppy seeds (15 g) should be poured with hot milk (200 ml). The resulting mixture must be insisted in a closed thermos for 24 hours. Strain and take orally.	The finished product should be taken 20 ml 2 times a day.
Lavender	Pour the dried flowers of the plant (20 g) with hot water (500 ml). Insist the resulting mass at room temperature for 1 hour. Then strain and take orally.	The finished medicine is consumed in 100 ml 3 times a day. Lavender has analgesic, sedative and anticonvulsant effects.
Mint tincture	Pour the dry leaves of the plant (15 g) with boiling water (200 ml) and leave for 1-2 hours. Strain and take for medicinal purposes.	The medicine soothes and reduces inflammation. Mint tincture is recommended for adolescents with meningitis, 100 ml 2 times a day.
Wormwood	Pour dry grass (3 tsp) with boiling water (30 ml). Close the resulting mixture in a glass container, wrap and leave for 2 hours. Strain the resulting tincture and take it orally.	With meningitis, a decoction of wormwood is recommended to use 50 ml 4 times a day before meals for 30 minutes.
Lime tea	Brew 250 g of plant flowers with hot water (1 l). Insist for 10-15 minutes and drain.	The finished medicine is recommended to be consumed instead of tea, 0.5 tbsp. 3 times a day.

Linden has anti-inflammatory and analgesic effects, helps to increase the body's defenses. Tincture based on mint, lemon balm and coriander fruits with the addition of alcohol can be taken orally or used for compresses on the temples, nape.

Other methods

Comprehensive treatment of meningitis in adolescents also provides for adherence to dietary nutrition, it is important that the menu is as gentle as possible for the patient.

Allowed Products	Prohibited foods
lean meats and fish eggs, steam omelet, soufflé dairy products and fats that are easily digestible vegetables fruits sweet and sour fruit juices dried bread, biscuits, crackers low-fat broth porridge, boiled noodles, noodles	canned and smoked dishes fatty, salted, dried fish whole milk, ice cream buckwheat and pearl barley porridge legumes spicy, fatty sauces, mustard, pepper, horseradish pastries, fresh wheat bread sweet carbonated drinks jam, honey

Dishes are recommended to be cooked in water or steam, baked and consumed in a grated form. Drink 2.5 liters of liquid every day (weak tea with milk or lemon, broth based on rosehip or wheat bran, jelly, fruit drink, compote). The same applies to table mineral waters, which improve material metabolism and remove toxins from the body.

Possible complications

Meningitis in adolescents (symptoms depend on the degree of development of pathological processes) should not be treated independently or at home. It is important to go to the hospital with the first symptoms of pathology, undergo a full examination and start therapy.

Pathological processes without qualified assistance provoke serious and dangerous consequences for human life, up to and including death.

Name	Description
Epilepsy	Disease of the brain, in which motor, sensory, thinking and mental functions are impaired. The pathological condition is provoked by a large number of neural discharges in the cerebral cortex.
Cerebroasthenia	Disease of the human body, which is characterized by chronic fatigue. Pathology is accompanied by memory impairment, dizziness, asthenic syndrome and severe headaches.
Encephalic Syndrome	A pathological condition in which the functioning of the brain is impaired. Problems with human consciousness appear, changes are manifested to varying degrees.
Hydrocephalus	A disease characterized by the accumulation of large amounts of cerebrospinal fluid in the region of the skull.

A complication of meningitis in adolescents is also blindness, strabismus, paralysis of body parts. The same goes for pressure sores and mental disabilities.

The symptoms of meningitis in adolescents cannot be ignored, since the pathology of an infectious origin leads to serious complications. It is important for the patient to receive timely and correct medical care, only in this way will his predictions for a favorable outcome and complete recovery increase.

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