Meningitis

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Meningitis

Meningitis is a disease that attacks the meninges. It travels around the body in order to reach these protective layers. It then lives in the cerebrospinal fluid. It attacks the body’s phages, therefore, placing stress on the brain. Not only does the bacteria attack the body, the stress causes a variety of conditions, most of which are related to hearing deficiencies. Meningitis attacks many different parts of the world both in the distant past and in recent years. The most common place for the four epidemic-causing serogroups of Neisseria meningitidis to attack is in the Meningitis Belt in sub-Saharan Africa.

Meningitis is a well-known disease among people; however, there are many confusing aspects about it. Many people do not truly understand what meningitis is, what is does, or how it causes so many devastating symptoms. To most people, meningitis is that disease that occurs every once in a while in little kids or old folk. However, what many do not know is that meningitis causes epidemics. There is at least one epidemic every few years somewhere in the world. Meningitis is a very dangerous disease that has been followed by and researched for years to understand these aspects. It is about time the public learned about meningitis, and essays like these are how they get informed.

The bacteria and viruses that cause meningitis have a pretty specific method by which they attack the human body. They have to find a way into the meninges, or the protective layers between the brain and the skull. They include the pia mater, the arachnoid, and the dura mater. The bacteria and/or viruses enter the bloodstream around the body (“Neuropathology” 6). Through complex interactions with the endothelial cells, they travel to the ...

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...r every year, all over the world, though mostly in the Meningitis Belt in Africa. With all these cases of meningitis going around, it is fairly contagious and very deadly. With this knowledge, the public can better protect itself from this dangerous disease and hopefully eradicate it in the near future.

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Bibliography

“Chapter Five: Infections of the Nervous System”. Jan 2007. Neuropathology. 20 Jul 2008.

Cunha, Burke A. The Diagnosis and Therapy of Acute Bacterial Meningitis. Ed. Schlossberg, David. New York: Springer-Verlag, 1990.

“Infections: Meningitis”. Sep 2007. Hirsch, Larissa, M.D. 13 Jul 2008.

“Meningococcal meningitis”. May 2003. World Health Organization. 13 Jul 2008.

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