Dr Ira Shah Editor - Pediatric Oncall What is meningitis?
Inflammation of the lining of the brain (meninges) is called as
meningitis. This meningitis can be due to infection or due to
certain drugs (chemical meningitis) or due to other diseases
such as autoimmune diseases where the body’s own cells attack
the meninges or cancer. However the term meningitis is commonly
used for infection of the meninges. What is the commonest cause
of infective meningitis? The common causes of meningitis are
infections with bacteria (bacterial meningitis), tuberculosis
(TB meningitis), fungal meningitis and viral meningitis. Of the
bacteria that cause meningitis, common germs are Neisseria,
streptococcus and hemophilus influenzae. However any organism
can cause meningitis. Among the fungal organisms, common fungi
causing meningitis are Candida and Cryptococcus. However fungal
meningitis usually does not occur in persons with good immunity.
It is more common in patients with poor immunity such as
patients on treatment for cance