Is meningitis contagious?

Meningitis is a very common disease. This disease causes great damage to the brain. Many people suffering from this disease suffer damage to all aspects of their bodies because of this disease. Therefore, after the disease occurs, it is necessary to treat it in time. Is meningitis contagious? Many people don’t know much about this. Is this disease contagious? We need to understand this disease.

Is meningitis contagious? The following is a detailed introduction to this type of disease. When treating this type of disease, you will know what method to choose. However, the treatment of meningitis also requires a long time, which is conducive to the stability of the disease.

Is meningitis contagious?

Meningitis is an inflammation of the brain. The meninges are the thin membranes that cover the brain and spinal cord. This meninges has three layers, the first is the outer thin membrane, called the dura mater, which is connected to the skull;

The second layer is the arachnoid membrane; the last layer is the innermost layer, called the pia mater, which is attached to the brain. Infections in these membranes are usually caused by invasion of bacteria or viruses. There are several ways that infection can reach the meninges.

For example, the infection may come from another part of the body, such as the lungs, that is infected. Spread through the bloodstream. They can also spread from infected ears or sinuses through spaces in the skull and into the brain.

If you have a head injury and there is a crack in the skull, infection can easily enter the brain. There are many forms of meningitis and varying degrees of inflammation. This mostly depends on which microorganisms or viruses are causing the disease.

Some forms of bacterial meningitis are contagious. Bacteria are often transmitted through respiratory and nasopharyngeal secretions (such as through coughing, kissing, etc.). Fortunately, no bacterial cause of meningitis is as contagious as influenza or SARS, and it cannot be transmitted through casual contact or simply inhaling the air breathed by a person with meningitis. But we should not take it lightly, as sometimes we can be infected with bacteria through close or prolonged contact with patients with meningitis.

Meningococcal disease is an infectious disease that is mainly transmitted through respiratory air droplets. Because it has extremely weak survival ability outside the body, the chance of indirect contact through daily necessities is extremely small. Meningococci generally parasitize in the nasal and pharyngeal mucosa of patients or healthy carriers.

When coughing, talking, or sneezing, a large amount of bacteria-carrying droplets are sprayed out, polluting the air. Once a healthy person inhales them, when the body's immunity and resistance are reduced, the meningococci will enter the bloodstream through the respiratory tract and then reach the brain, causing inflammatory changes in meningitis and a series of clinical symptoms.

People who work in the same room with patients, work in nurseries, or have direct contact with patients' oral secretions (such as kissing) are considered to be a high-risk group for infection.

Through the above introduction, we have a good understanding of whether meningitis is contagious. Therefore, when treating such a disease, it must be done in a timely manner. Especially for patients with severe meningitis, we must pay attention to all aspects of physical examination. If the physical examination is incomplete, it will not help stabilize the disease and treat the disease.