Meningococcal Disease Is a Severe and Deadly Disease that Can Be Treated if Caught on Time

Meningococcal disease is a disease that can be found worldwide. Meningococcal disease refers to any disease or illness that is caused by the type of bacteria called Neisseria meningitides, also called meningococcus (Meningococcal disease, 2015). The first documented outbreak was over two hundred years ago in Geneva in 1805 which circulated rapidly and killed thirty three people. The first case ever recorded in America was in 1806 in Medford, Massachusetts (Fredericks, n.d.). A European physician, Professor A Weichselbaum, discovered the cause of the mysterious cerebro-spinal meningitis illness in 1887 and Penicillin was the first antibiotic used to fight the disease. In 1978 the first

Infections can be spread through many things, these include; food borne infection, person to person, water borne infection, airborne infection, insect borne infection and fomites.

Neisseria meningitidis is a fastidious, aerobic, and encapsulated gram-negative diplococcus which infects humans via droplet transmission to and from mucosal surfaces in the nasopharyngeal region. Only humans can be infected with N. meningitidis and the disease manifests in children under two years of age and in young adults. N. meningitidis can be found as normal regional flora of the nasopharynx in some individuals, but when it causes infection leads to meningitis and occasionally septicaemia. The major symptoms of N. meningitidis infection include a stiff neck, high fever, photophobia, confusion, cephalgia and emesis. If the patient’s condition has worsened causing sepsis, they can present with a haemorrhagic rash which is indicative of

These bacteria are spread by direct contact with nose and throat discharges of an infected individual or with infected skin lesions. The risk of spread is greatest when an individual is ill, such as when people have strep throat or an infected wound. Individuals who carry the bacteria but have no symptoms are much less contagious. Treatment of an infected person with an

The video addressed meningococcal bacteria and its effects on individuals who have contracted the disease. The PBS NOVA program, “The Killer Disease,” is a fast spreading bacterial infection which affects either the spinal cord, spinal cord and brain, or brain with the bacteria. When discovered and treated, the pace and quickness of the spread of the disease after it has begun “the beginning of the end” in terms of the damage to body or taking of life.

Meningitis is a contagious infection of the cerebrospinal fluid and inflammation of the meninges, the nearby membrane that covers the spinal cord and brain. Both the meninges and cerebrospinal fluid serve as protectors

     In 1887, the causative agent Neisseria Meningitidis, the meningococcus, was identified. Because of its potential to cause epidemics, Neisseria Meningitidis is one of the most important types. In 1805, when Meningococcal disease was first described, an outbreak swept through Geneva, Switzerland. Twelve subtypes of Neisseria Meningitidis have been identified. Four of them have been recognized to cause epidemics. Those four are: A, B, C, and W135. The capabilities differ of the pathogenicity, immunogenicity, and

Only a minority of carried meningococci are harmful. Infection is caused when the bacteria, for reasons that are not currently understood, move from the back of the throat into the bloodstream and multiply rapidly. Once in the bloodstream, these bacteria can cause septicaemia and, in many cases, infect the meninges and cause

Neisseria meningitides is a bacteria that causes meningoccal disease. It is aerobic, Gram-negative bacteria that causes serious, sometimes fatal, infection

N. meningitides specifically is carried in nasal mucosa and secretions and concentrates in the nasopharynx of those it will infect (Smeltzer, Bare, Hinkle, & Cheever, 2010). Once the offending bacteria reach the central nervous system (CNS), it replicates and undergoes lysis, which releases endotoxins (Porth & Matfin, 2009). These cell

There are multiple different types of bacteria that can cause bacterial meningitis, which were discovered in the late 19th century. These bacteria’s are Streptococcus pneumonia, Streptococcus pneumonia, and Haemophilus influenza. (1) Russian physician Vladimir Kernig and Polish physician Jozef Brudzinski both separately found other symptoms of meningitis this leading to the Kernig’s sign and the Brudzinski sign.

Streptococcus pneumoniae is found worldwide. The common host is the human body, in which it often does not cause disease but at other times it can cause diseses in particular, pneumonia. It also causes otitis media, bacteremia, meningitis, peritonitis, and sinusitis. The route by which this organism is spread is from human to human in the form of aerosol droplets. When inside the host the organism’s primary site of pneumococcal colonization is the nasopharynx. From this site it can aspire to the lungs, eventually spread to the blood and traverse the blood-brain barrier to the meninges, once inside the blood it can cause infections throughout the body. Symptoms of the disease include sudden

This is an infectious disease. Infectious diseases are disorder that are caused by organisms such as, viruses, bacteria, parasites, or fungi. Some infectious diseases can be passed from human to human

Even one drop of nasal fluid can be enough to make another person ill if the drop of fluid makes contact. This disease is easily spread through direct and indirect contact, whether it is through kissing or sharing eating utensils. The easiest way to protect against meningitis is to stay away from infected people and not to share utensils or other personal objects with other people. Also, good hygiene is extremely

M. pneumoniae is generally referred to as primary atypical or walking pneumonia because the symptoms are not as sever as pneumonia. The symptoms include a dry hacking cough, fever, and headache. The symptoms will last for about 2 to 3 weeks. M. pneumoniae affects people worldwide. Typically only 33 % of people who have M. pneumoniae will get atypical pneumonia. The majority, 77 %, will come down with an upper tract infection (tracheaobronchitis). (Pulmonary Disorders pg 609) M. pneumoniae is transmitted through aerosol droplets. The bacterium is capable of infecting anyone at any time but it has a pattern of coming in the fall and winter and causing an outbreak every 4 to 8 years, although more tight communities occur more frequently. The pathogen rarely occurs on children less than 4 years of age. Since the bacterium lacks a cell wall, B-lactums are futile against them. The body’s immune system is responsible for killing the pathogen. There were 2 million cases in the US with 100,000 requiring hospitalization. The mortality rate is very low with only occasional fatalities among the elderly and sickle cell anemia persons. ( ).