Is Viral Meningitis Deadly?

… Continued …

The risk of having attention deficits.
Short-term memory loss.
Neurological problems, especially for babies under 1 year of age. See more meningitis in babies in here!

But in general, viral meningitis is more treatable and less likely to cause serious complications (again, it’s rarely life-threatening). Since the disease could also turn into serious, it’s much better to see a doctor if you or your children have any symptom of meningitis!

Medical intervention is necessary for certain types of viral meningitis. If it’s caused by herpes virus or human immunodeficiency virus, medications effective against those viruses are prescribed.

So identifying the exact cause of the disease is important so your doctor can determine the treatment that works best. Remember, the symptoms can resemble those of bacterial meningitis. If patients appear very ill, certain treatments for bacterial meningitis may be used until diagnosis is ruled out!

Bacterial meningitis is very dangerous. Without early prompt treatment, it could kill within hours. Even when the infection has cleared up, it often causes serious lingering effects (read more this issue in this section).

Key points to remember?

Viral meningitis is less likely to cause serious after effects (complications). And its complications are also usually not as severe as those of bacterial meningitis.
But though it is often considered mild, sometimes it could also turn into serious (this is especially true for people with weakened immune system).
Clearly diagnosis is important to make sure that the disease is not associated with bacterial infection.
Meningitis-causing virus can be passed between people, but this transmission would be very unlikely to cause someone else to develop the disease as well. However it’s recommended for babies, young children, and people with compromised immune system to restrict /avoid a direct contact with someone infected by meningitis-causing viruses.
Vaccines are available to help prevent some types of viral meningitis.
In general there is no specific treatment. But in some cases, certain medications (antiviral medicines, for example) can be prescribed.

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