Papilloedema and Cranial Nerve Palsies Complicating Apparent Benign Aseptic Meningitis

Varicella Zoster Aseptic Meningitis: Report of an Atypical Case and Literature Review

Patient: Female, 15

Final Diagnosis: Varicella Zoster aseptic meningitis

Symptoms: —

Medication: —

Clinical Procedure: Lumber punctur

Specialty: Infectious Diseases

Enteroviral meningitis. Cost of illness and considerations for the economic evaluation of potential therapies

With limited financial resources available, it is now becoming more acceptable to evaluate medical innovations in terms of incremental economic value. The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of enteroviral meningitis and to summarise the economic literature to identify relevant costs and outcomes. Enteroviral meningitis is the most common cause of aseptic meningitis, and occurs in 4.5 to 30 per 100,000 population annually with a duration of illness lasting between 1 and 2 weeks after onset of initial symptoms. The major resource categories that contribute to the overall direct costs of management of enteroviral meningitis include physician visits, hospital admissions, emergency room visits, medications, procedures such as lumbar puncture and computed tomography scans, re-hospitalizations and follow-up physician visits. Indirect costs are incurred in terms of school or work days missed or restrictions in daily activities. The total direct costs of an episode of enteroviral meningitis range from $US450 for outpatients to $US5093 for inpatient management (1996 values). The total indirect costs of an episode of enteroviral meningitis are estimated to be equivalent to 5 to 7 activity-restricted days. Interventions that improve early diagnosis or decrease the duration and need for hospitalisation will significantly affect the cost of managing enteroviral meningitis. Additional prospective studies are needed to study the impact of interventions on the burden of enteroviral meningitis.

Viral meningitis. Tips to rapidly diagnose treatable causes

Viral meningitis is a common illness among children and is most often caused by enteroviruses. Diagnosis is made on the basis of clinical findings and analysis of the cerebrospinal fluid. Important conditions to consider in diagnosis are partially treated bacterial meningitis, tuberculous meningitis, fungal meningitis, other infections, and central nervous system tumor. Ruling out treatable causes early is important. Treatment of enteroviral meningitis is supportive, and the prognosis is usually very good, although significant neurologic sequelae have been reported.