Home Health Center Meningitis   Meningitis - Contagious

Is Meningitis Contagious

 Meningitis is caused either due to bacteria, viruses or fungi. However, it is rather difficult to identify. Carriers of the dormant meningitis germs are far more dangerous than those in which the symptoms are active.

The most common question to arise in the context of the disease would be if meningitis is contagious? Viral meningitis is far more contagious than bacterial or fungal meningitis. This is due to the fact that in the case of viral meningitis, the infection spreads through the respiratory secretions of the diseased individual. Often, young school-going children are susceptible to this kind of meningitis owing to poor personal hygiene at that age. It spreads through sneezing, coughing and so on. The infection can spread in about 10 days. In the case of bacterial meningitis, the spread occurs through intimate contact with the infected person. This would include exchange of saliva through kissing, drinking from the same glass, sharing of utensils, and so on.

It takes about 4 to 5 days for the symptoms to develop. The virus cannot overcome the immune system and although a person might be infected, viral meningitis can remain dormant for a long period of time. There are chances of viral meningitis rearing its head if/when the immune system shows signs of weakness. The important thing to note is that transmission of the virus will occur irrespective of whether or not the infected person displays the symptoms of the same.


Frequently asked questions

• How To Treat Meningitis Naturally?
• What Are Meningitis Home Remedies?

References

1. Justine Miranda, Allan R. Tunkel, Strategies and New Developments in the Management of Bacterial Meningitis, Infectious Disease Clinics of North America, Volume 23, Issue 4, December 2009, Pages 925-943, ISSN 0891-5520, 10.1016/j.idc.2009.06.014.
2. Charles S Bryan, Kenneth L Reynolds, Linda Crout, Promptness of antibiotic therapy in acute bacterial meningitis, Annals of Emergency Medicine, Volume 15, Issue 5, May 1986, Pages 544-547, ISSN 0196-0644, 10.1016/S0196-0644(86)80990-8.
3. Swati Waghdhare, Ashwini Kalantri, Rajnish Joshi, Shriprakash Kalantri, Accuracy of physical signs for detecting meningitis: A hospital-based diagnostic accuracy study, Clinical Neurology and Neurosurgery, Volume 112, Issue 9, November 2010, Pages 752-757, ISSN 0303-8467, 10.1016/j.clineuro.2010.06.003.