Conditions & Diseases: Brain & Nervous System

Meningitis

See Also:
Meningitis: Introduction
Meningitis: Types
Meningitis: Causes & Risk Factors
Meningitis: Signs & Symptoms
Meningitis: Medical Tests & Diagnosis Methods
Meningitis: Treatment Options
Meningitis: Prevention Methods

Causes & Risk Factors

As already stated in the types of meningitis, viral meningitis is caused by various types of viruses and bacterial meningitis due to various strains of bacteria. Similarly, meningitis can be caused by fungi and amoeba.

Chronic meningitis is caused due to invasion of meninges and cerebrospinal fluid with “…slow-growing organisms.” In addition, drug allergies, cancer and inflammatory diseases like lupus may also cause meningitis (15).

Some of the risk factors for meningitis include:

• Age: Babies below 5 years of age, youth in the age group of 15-24 and older adults are at a greater risk of being infected with meningitis.

• Community Living: Students living in hostels, dormitories, military personnel living in camps and children living in hostels are at a higher risk of developing meningitis.

• Pregnancy: Pregnant mothers are likely to develop listeriosis, which is caused by listeria bacteria. This bacterium may also cause meningitis. A child born of women suffering from listeriosis is at higher risk of developing meningitis.

• Animals: Dairy farmers and ranchers working with pets and domestic animals are at a increased risk of developing listeria which may ultimately lead to meningitis.

• Immune-Compromised System: People suffering from AIDS, diabetes and those using immunosuppressant drugs are susceptible to develop meningitis (16).

See Also:
Meningitis: Introduction
Meningitis: Types
Meningitis: Causes & Risk Factors
Meningitis: Signs & Symptoms
Meningitis: Medical Tests & Diagnosis Methods
Meningitis: Treatment Options
Meningitis: Prevention Methods

Article by Kona Vishnu, MS
Medical Writer,
OmniMedicalSearch.com