ASEPTIC MENINGITIS IN ADULTS CAUSING BY VIRUS, BACTERIA, DRUG WITH SPECIAL REFERENCES TO ZOONOTIC PARASITES.

Diagnosis of a patient with aseptic meningitis may be so-difficult because of the large vanety of potential etiologic agents as viruses, fungi, parasites and some drugs and the overlap between self-limited viral illnesses and potentially fatal bact~nial infections.

A case report on eosinophilic meningitis caused by Angiostrongylus cantonensis.

Angiostrongylus cantonensis is the most common cause of eosinophilic meningitis in humans. It is usually caused by ingestion of raw or inadequately cooked intermediate hosts or food contaminated with infective third-stage larvae. We describe a case of eosinophilic meningitis caused by A. cantonensis in a male Chinese patient. The patient had a history of eating raw fish and snail. We describe the clinical features of the patient, the diagnostic process and treatments. We also provide a brief update for physicians on the characteristics, diagnosis and treatment of eosinophilic meningitis caused by A. cantonensis, with particular emphasis on the update of prevalence and treatment of the disease in China.

December 2002: 19-year old male with febrile illness after jet ski accident.

The December 2002 COM. A 19-year-old healthy male fell into stagnant water of the intercostal waterway (salt water of South Florida), following a jet ski accident. He sustained minor superficial injuries but engulfed significant quantities of water and sediment. A few days later he developed bifrontal headaches, vomiting, a stiff neck and a temperature of 102 degrees F. A CT scan on admission without contrast was negative. The CSF had markedly elevated white count but bacterial and fungal cultures were negative. He became progressively lethargic. On the fifth day he developed seizure activity. He expired the next day despite antibiotics. Gross examination of the brain at autopsy revealed edema, cerebellar tonsillar herniation and purulent meningitis. Microscopic examination revealed a massive leptomeningeal inflammatory infiltrate composed of neutrophils, lymphocytes, and numerous histiocyte-like cells. The inflammatory infiltrate extended into the cerebral parenchyma in numerous areas also involving the cerebellum, brainstem and ventricular system. Given the exposure to stagnant water (later confirmed to be a man-made fresh water lake), and the numerous histiocytic-like cells, suspicion for an amebic etiology of the disease process was raised and the CDC identified the ameba as Naegleria Fowleri. Infection by Naegleria Fowleri, a free-living ameba, occurs after exposure to polluted water in man-made fresh water lakes, ponds, swimming pools, particularly during the warm weather months when the thermophilic ameba grows well. The pathologic substrate of the infection is an acute hemorrhagic, necrotizing meningo-encephalitis mainly at the base of the brain, brainstem and cerebellum occurring in young, healthy individuals.

An outbreak of eosinophilic meningitis caused by Angiostrongylus cantonensis in travelers returning from the Caribbean.

BACKGROUND: Outbreaks of eosinophilic meningitis caused by the roundworm Angiostrongylus cantonensis are rarely reported, even in regions of endemic infection such as Southeast Asia and the Pacific Basin. We report an outbreak of A. cantonensis meningitis among travelers returning from the Caribbean. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective cohort study among 23 young adults who had traveled to Jamaica. We used a clinical definition of eosinophilic meningitis that included headache that began within 35 days after the trip plus at least one of the following: neck pain, nuchal rigidity, altered cutaneous sensations, photophobia, or visual disturbances. RESULTS: Twelve travelers met the case definition for eosinophilic meningitis. The symptoms began a median of 11 days (range, 6 to 31) after their return to the United States. Eosinophilia was eventually documented in all nine patients who were hospitalized, although on initial evaluation, it was present in the peripheral blood of only four of the nine (44 percent) and in the cerebrospinal fluid of five (56 percent). Repeated lumbar punctures and corticosteroid therapy led to improvement in symptoms in two of three patients with severe headache, and intracranial pressure decreased during corticosteroid therapy in all three. Consumption of one meal (P=0.001) and of a Caesar salad at that meal (P=0.007) were strongly associated with eosinophilic meningitis. Antibodies against an A. cantonensis--specific 31-kD antigen were detected in convalescent-phase serum samples from 11 patients. CONCLUSIONS: Among travelers at risk, the presence of headache, elevated intracranial pressure, and pleocytosis, with or without eosinophilia, particularly in association with paresthesias or hyperesthesias, should alert clinicians to the possibility of A. cantonensis infection.