Shingles—Meningitis

Also called: Spinal meningitis

Meningitis is inflammation of the thin tissue that surrounds the brain and spinal cord, called the meninges. There are several types of meningitis. The most common is viral meningitis. You get it when a virus enters the body through the nose or mouth and travels to the brain. Bacterial meningitis is rare, but can be deadly. It usually starts with bacteria that cause a cold-like infection. It can cause stroke, hearing loss, and brain damage. It can also harm other organs. Pneumococcal infections and meningococcal infections are the most common causes of bacterial meningitis.

Anyone can get meningitis, but it is more common in people with weak immune systems. Meningitis can get serious very quickly. You should get medical care right away if you have

• A sudden high fever
• A severe headache
• A stiff neck
• Nausea or vomiting

Early treatment can help prevent serious problems, including death. Tests to diagnose meningitis include blood tests, imaging tests, and a spinal tap to test cerebrospinal fluid. Antibiotics can treat bacterial meningitis. Antiviral medicines may help some types of viral meningitis. Other medicines can help treat symptoms.

There are vaccines to prevent some of the bacterial infections that cause meningitis.

NIH: National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke

• Cerebral spinal fluid (CSF) collection (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Cerebrospinal fluid culture (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Meningitis (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Meningitis – cryptococcal (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Meningitis – gram-negative (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Meningitis – H. influenzae (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Meningococcal ACWY Vaccines – MenACWY and MPSV4: What You Need to Know (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) – PDF
• Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine (PCV13): What You Need to Know (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) – PDF
• Pneumococcal Polysaccharide Vaccine: What You Need to Know (Immunization Action Coalition) – PDF
• Pneumococcal Polysaccharide Vaccine: What You Need to Know (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) – PDF

Also called: Herpes zoster, Postherpetic neuralgia

Shingles is a disease caused by the varicella-zoster virus – the same virus that causes chickenpox. After you have chickenpox, the virus stays in your body. It may not cause problems for many years. As you get older, the virus may reappear as shingles. Although it is most common in people over age 50, anyone who has had chickenpox is at risk.

You can’t catch shingles from someone who has it. However, if you have a shingles rash, you can pass the virus to someone who has never had chickenpox. This would usually be a child, who could get chickenpox instead of shingles. The virus spreads through direct contact with the rash, and cannot spread through the air.

Early signs of shingles include burning or shooting pain and tingling or itching, usually on one side of the body or face. The pain can be mild to severe. Rashes or blisters appear anywhere from one to 14 days later. If shingles appears on your face, it may affect your vision or hearing. The pain of shingles may last for weeks, months, or even years after the blisters have healed.

There is no cure for shingles. Early treatment with medicines that fight the virus may help. These medicines may also help prevent lingering pain.

A vaccine may prevent shingles or lessen its effects. The vaccine is recommended for people 60 or over. In some cases doctors may give it to people ages 50 to 59.

NIH: National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases

• Post-herpetic neuralgia – aftercare (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Ramsay Hunt syndrome (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Shingles (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Shingles – aftercare (Medical Encyclopedia)
• Shingles Vaccine: What You Need to Know (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) – PDF