Table of contents:
- Are there any links between the symptoms of meningitis and COVID-19?
- 1,024,298
- 831,330
- 28,855
- The patient was diagnosed with meningitis due to COVID-19
- Watch out for COVID-19 in patients with symptoms of meningitis
Japanese researchers from the University of Yamanashi Hospital reported cases of COVID-19 infection with symptoms of meningitis. Meningitis is an infection that causes inflammation of the lining of the brain and spinal cord. This causes a person to have fever, vomiting, headaches, neck stiffness, and fainting.
This is known to be the first case of SARS-CoV-2 virus infection causing meningitis symptoms in the patient. Common symptoms in patients infected with the coronavirus that causes COVID-19 are fever, sore throat, runny nose, and shortness of breath such as pneumonia.
Are there any links between the symptoms of meningitis and COVID-19?
Study entitled A first Case of Meningitis / Encephalitis associated with SARS-Coronavirus-2 published in the International Journal of Infectious Disease explains the link between meningitis symptoms and COVID-19 infection.
The study report describes a 24-year-old male patient who was rushed to hospital because he was found to be unconscious.
Prior to the seizure, the patient felt several health complaints. On the first day, he felt tired and had a high fever.
Because the fever did not go down, on the second day this patient went to the nearest clinic to have his condition checked. Then the doctor gave the drug laninamivir and antipyretics. Laninamivir is a type of medicine to treat and prevent influenza, while antipyretics are drugs to relieve fever.
1,024,298
Confirmed831,330
Recovered28,855
DeathDistribution MapOn the fifth day, her complaints had not subsided so she went back to the doctor. This time with additional complaints of headache and sore throat. Doctor did x-ray chest and did blood tests but did not find any sign in the results of the examination.
On the 9th day, the family who visited the house found the man unconscious on the floor, with vomit marks all over. He was then rushed to the hospital by ambulance.
On the way to the hospital, he had seizures for about a minute and his neck looked very stiff.
The patient was diagnosed with meningitis due to COVID-19
In the emergency department, the male patient was fitted with a breathing apparatus (endotracheal intubation and mechanical ventilation) because he had recurrent epileptic seizures.
He was then transferred to the ICU because he was diagnosed with meningitis and pneumonia due to COVID-19.
In addition to getting treatment for meningitis and other symptoms, this patient also carried out an RT-PCR lab examination, which is a laboratory test to detect the presence of the virus that causes COVID-19.
The hospital took a sample of the throat mucus swab (swab throat) and samples from Cerebrospinal Fluid (CSF) is a kind of fluid that envelops the brain.
Although the results of the throat mucus sample examination tested negative, the male CSF sample indicated that he was positive for COVID-19.
Watch out for COVID-19 in patients with symptoms of meningitis
The results of a brain examination showed the possibility of meningitis caused by the coronavirus that causes COVID-19.
Central nervous system infection or meningitis can be caused by viral or bacterial infections that can attack the lining of the brain. So in this case the possibility of infecting the central nerve is the SARS-CoV-2 virus.
The initial study of one case was intended to warn doctors and medical personnel that meningitis or a central nervous system infection could be a symptom of the effects of COVID-19. Can cause symptoms such as headache, nausea and vomiting.
The researchers emphasized that to end the COVID-19 pandemic, the diagnosis of disease in patients must be done quickly, especially if the disease is meningitis. The findings about the COVID-19 virus should not be ignored, even if only on a small scale.
