Meningitis In Setting Research Articles

Cerebral Toxoplasmosis Mimicking Subacute Meningitis in HIV-Infected Patients; a Cohort Study from Indonesia

BackgroundHIV-associated subacute meningitis is mostly caused by tuberculosis or cryptococcosis, but often no etiology can be established. In the absence of CT or MRI of the brain, toxoplasmosis is generally not considered as part of the differential diagnosis.Methodology/Principal FindingsWe performed cerebrospinal fluid real time PCR and serological testing for Toxoplasma gondii in archived samples from a well-characterized cohort of 64 HIV-infected patients presenting with subacute meningitis in a referral hospital in Indonesia. Neuroradiology was only available for 6 patients.At time of presentation, patients mostly had newly diagnosed and advanced HIV infection (median CD4 count 22 cells/mL), with only 17.2% taking ART, and 9.4% PJP-prophylaxis. CSF PCR for T. Gondii was positive in 21 patients (32.8%). Circulating toxoplasma IgG was present in 77.2% of patients tested, including all in whom the PCR of CSF was positive for T. Gondii. Clinically, in the absence of neuroradiology, toxoplasmosis was difficult to distinguish from tuberculosis or cryptococcal meningitis, although CSF abnormalities were less pronounced. Mortality among patients with a positive CSF T. Gondii PCR was 81%, 2.16-fold higher (95% CI 1.04–4.47) compared to those with a negative PCR.Conclusions/SignificanceToxoplasmosis should be considered in HIV-infected patients with clinically suspected subacute meningitis in settings where neuroradiology is not available.

Performance of Thirteen Clinical Rules to Distinguish Bacterial and Presumed Viral Meningitis in Vietnamese Children

Background and PurposeSuccessful outcomes from bacterial meningitis require rapid antibiotic treatment; however, unnecessary treatment of viral meningitis may lead to increased toxicities and expense. Thus, improved diagnostics are required to maximize treatment and minimize side effects and cost. Thirteen clinical decision rules have been reported to identify bacterial from viral meningitis. However, few rules have been tested and compared in a single study, while several rules are yet to be tested by independent researchers or in pediatric populations. Thus, simultaneous test and comparison of these rules are required to enable clinicians to select an optimal diagnostic rule for bacterial meningitis in settings and populations similar to ours.MethodsA retrospective cross-sectional study was conducted at the Infectious Department of Pediatric Hospital Number 1, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. The performance of the clinical rules was evaluated by area under a receiver operating characteristic curve (ROC-AUC) using the method of DeLong and McNemar test for specificity comparison.ResultsOur study included 129 patients, of whom 80 had bacterial meningitis and 49 had presumed viral meningitis. Spanos's rule had the highest AUC at 0.938 but was not significantly greater than other rules. No rule provided 100% sensitivity with a specificity higher than 50%. Based on our calculation of theoretical sensitivity and specificity, we suggest that a perfect rule requires at least four independent variables that posses both sensitivity and specificity higher than 85–90%.ConclusionsNo clinical decision rules provided an acceptable specificity (>50%) with 100% sensitivity when applying our data set in children. More studies in Vietnam and developing countries are required to develop and/or validate clinical rules and more very good biomarkers are required to develop such a perfect rule.

Healthcare-Associated Bacterial Meningitis

Healthcare-associated bacterial meningitis may occur after neurosurgical procedures, head trauma, and following placement of external or internal ventricular catheters. The likely microorganisms that cause meningitis in this setting (ie, staphylococci and gram-negative bacilli) are different from those that cause meningitis in the community setting. Any clinical suspicion of healthcare-associated bacterial meningitis should prompt a diagnostic evaluation (neuroimaging and cerebrospinal fluid analysis) and appropriate management. Empiric antimicrobial therapy should be directed toward the likely infecting pathogen; based upon clinical response, intraventricular administration of specific agents may be required. With the emergence of resistant gram-negative bacilli (especially Acinetobacter baumannii) that may cause healthcare-associated meningitis, empiric therapy with a carbapenem, with or without an aminoglycoside administered by the intraventricular or intrathecal route, is recommended; colistin (given intravenously and/or intraventricularly) can be used if the organism is subsequently found to be resistant to carbapenems.

Identification of Serotype in Culture Negative Pneumococcal Meningitis Using Sequential Multiplex PCR: Implication for Surveillance and Vaccine Design

BackgroundPCR-based serotyping of Streptococcus pneumoniae has been proposed as a simpler approach than conventional methods, but has not been applied to strains in Asia where serotypes are diverse and different from other part of the world. Furthermore, PCR has not been used to determine serotype distribution in culture-negative meningitis cases.MethodologyThirty six serotype-specific primers, 7 newly designed and 29 previously published, were arranged in 7 multiplex PCR sets, each in new hierarchies designed for overall serotype distribution in Bangladesh, and specifically for meningitis and non-meningitis isolates. Culture-negative CSF specimens were then tested directly for serotype-specific sequences using the meningitis-specific set of primers. PCR-based serotyping of 367 strains of 56 known serotypes showed 100% concordance with quellung reaction test. The first 7 multiplex reactions revealed the serotype of 40% of all, and 31% and 48% non-meningitis and meningitis isolates, respectively. By redesigning the multiplex scheme specifically for non-meningitis or meningitis, the quellung reaction of 43% and 48% of respective isolates could be identified. Direct examination of 127 culture-negative CSF specimens, using the meningitis-specific set of primers, yielded serotype for 51 additional cases.ConclusionsThis PCR approach, could improve ascertainment of pneumococcal serotype distributions, especially for meningitis in settings with high prior use of antibiotics.

Activity of teicoplanin and vancomycin against penicillin-resistant pneumococci

There are few therapeutic options available for the management of penicillin- and cephalosporin-resistant pneumococcal disease. The glycopeptide agents vancomycin and teicoplanin remain universally active against pneumococci. Against systemic isolates vancomycin demonstrates reliable clinical efficacy, but its use in meningitis is hampered by unreliable CSF penetration. The drug may be used in combination with a third-generation cephalosporin for the treatment of meningitis in settings where resistant strains are common. More data are however required on the interaction of vancomycin and third-generation cephalosporins in the CSF of infected patients. The superior in vitro activity of teicoplanin over vancomycin suggests that further CSF penetration studies are required. Additional studies should also address the interaction of teicoplanin with third generation cephalosporins in vitro and perhaps its use as adjunctive combination therapy for resistant pneumococcal meningitis.