Inflammation of the spinal cord and brain is called meningitis. This is a very dangerous disease that can provoke irreversible complications, the violation of all functions and systems of the body, in some cases it leads to death. Therefore, it is important to be able to immediately recognize the signs of meningitis. Moreover, he has many specific symptoms, allowing to distinguish the inflammation of the brain from other pathologies.
What are the first signs of meningitis?
The earliest clinical manifestations of the disease are associated with intoxication of the body with the products of the life-activating pathogen of meningitis:
- pallor of the skin;
- high temperature ;
- increased heart rate;
- pain syndrome in the joints and muscles;
- bluish shade of the face, especially the nasolabial triangle;
- dyspnea;
- lowering blood pressure;
- deterioration of appetite until refusal to eat;
- strong thirst;
- motor anxiety;
- an excited state, which is replaced by weakness and lethargy;
- bursting, intense headache;
- stiffness of the occiput muscles (impossibility of bending the head).
Also, in 1-2 days from the beginning of the pathology, a rash of pink or red color may appear on the skin of the feet, shins, thighs and buttocks. When pressed, it disappears for a short time. After a few hours, the rashes become hemorrhagic and look like small hematomas with a dark center.
The presence of rash in combination with hyperthermia is the basis for the immediate call of the ambulance team, since this symptom indicates the necrosis of soft tissues against the background of sepsis.
Common signs of meningitis
The defeat of the membranes of the spinal cord or brain is accompanied by inflammation of the cranial nerves, which causes the following main signs of meningitis:
- nystagmus;
- decreased visual acuity;
- ptosis of the eyelids;
- bifurcation of objects in the eyes;
- paresis of facial muscles;
- hearing impairment;
- strabismus;
- confusion, hallucinations.
In addition, the pathology has a number of painful specific symptoms:
- Mendel - when probing the external auditory canal.
- Bechterew - when tapping a zygomatic arch. In addition, there is an involuntary contraction of facial muscles.
- Mondonzi - when pressed on closed eyelids.
- Pulatova - when tapping the skull.
In addition, a person feels pain in the case of pressure in the exit zone of the cranial nerves - under the eye, in the middle of the eyebrow.
Characteristic signs of the disease are meningitis
Clinical manifestations that make it possible to distinguish inflammation of the brain from other similar diseases are called meningeal syndrome . It includes the following symptoms:
1. Guillain - when squeezing 4 muscles on the thigh of one leg, uncontrolled flexion occurs in the knee and hip joint of the other leg.
2. Kerniga - if you bend the patient's leg in the hip joint, it is impossible to unbend it in the knee.
3. Hermann - with the bending of the neck, an extension of both thumbs on the feet occurs.
4. Brudzinsky:
- Subcutaneous - when pressing down on the points under cheekbones on the cheeks, forearms are bent and the shoulders are raised;
- upper - in a supine position on the back, if you bring your head to your chest, your legs bend in the hip joints and knees;
- middle - with intensive pressure on the lonnoe articulation (above the external genital organs), legs are bent exactly as in the previous paragraph;
- lower - if you bend one leg in the knee and hip joint, the second will take the same position.
5. Curle (pose of a pedigree dog) - the patient bends his legs and pulls them to his stomach, clasping his hands. At the same time, he throws back his head.