Meningococcal meningitis with myelopathy: case report and review of literature

• Authors: Nikhil Choudhary , Nirmal Kumar , Ravinder Ahlawat , Kapil Jain , Yasir Rizvi , Gaurav Agarwal , Bhavna Kaul
• Languages of publication: EN

Abstracts

EN

Neisseria meningitis is a common etiological agent in bacterial meningitis in humans. Common complications associated with meningococcal meningitis include cranial nerve palsies, hydrocephalus, seizures, stroke, cerebritis or brain abscesses. Spinal cord dysfunction is a very rare complication of meningococcal meningitis and its occurrence is limited to case reports only. We report such a case along with a review of available literature and underlying pathogenetic mechanisms. Case report: Our patient diagnosed as a case of meningococcal meningitis developed multiple cranial nerve palsies followed by flaccid paraplegia with bowel bladder involvement during the recovery phase of the disease. Spine MRI showed mild cord edema and diffuse patchy areas of altered intramedullary signal intensity in dorsal cord suggestive of myelitis. The patient was treated with antibiotics and intravenous methyl-prednisolone along with supportive physiotherapy. His neurological deficits showed marked improvement on subsequent follow up.

Keywords

EN

Meningococcal meningitis; paraplegia; myelopathy; spinal cord dysfunction; India; MRI findings

• Publisher: De Gruyter Open
• Journal: Open Medicine
• Year: 2007
• Volume: 2
• Issue: 1
• Pages: 122-127

Dates

published

1 - 3 - 2007

online

1 - 3 - 2007

Contributors

author

Nikhil Choudhary

• Department of Medicine, Maulana Azad Medical College, New Delhi, 110002, India

author

Nirmal Kumar

• Department of Medicine, Maulana Azad Medical College, New Delhi, 110002, India

author

Ravinder Ahlawat

• Department of Medicine, Maulana Azad Medical College, New Delhi, 110002, India

author

Kapil Jain

• Department of Medicine, Maulana Azad Medical College, New Delhi, 110002, India

author

Yasir Rizvi

• Department of Medicine, Maulana Azad Medical College, New Delhi, 110002, India

author

Gaurav Agarwal

• Department of Medicine, Maulana Azad Medical College, New Delhi, 110002, India

author

Bhavna Kaul

• Department of Medicine, Maulana Azad Medical College, New Delhi, 110002, India

References

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Identifiers

DOI

10.2478/s11536-007-0002-x