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№2' 2018

INFECTIOUS DISEASES

International Medical Journal, Vol. 24., Iss. 2, 2018, P. 74−78.

PRESENT-DAY CLINICAL AND LABORATORY CHARACTERISTIC OF ACUTE MENINGOCOCCAL AND PNEUMOCOCCAL NEUROINFECTIONS IN ADULTS

Kharkov National Medical University, Ukraine

Acute bacterial neuroinfections remain a significant problem due to the severe course and high mortality. Studies in this area are mainly devoted to the investigation of meningitis in children. However, up to 35−40 % of meningitis cases develop in adults. The questions of etiological structure, clinical and laboratory features and results of treatment of these diseases remain insufficiently studied. In the structure of bacterial neuroinfections, meningococcal and pneumococcal etiology predominates. To determine the clinical and laboratory features of acute meningococcal and pneumococcal neuroinfections in adults, clinical−anamnestic and laboratory data of patients with acute neuroinfection with confirmed meningococcal and pneumococcal etiology of the disease were analyzed. Acute meningococcal and pneumococcal neuroinfections were characterized by rapid onset and rapid development of complications like cerebral edema and encephalitis. The highest mortality rate (17.78 %) was registered in patients with pneumococcal infection. After the first day of treatment, clinical blood count was characterized by leukocytosis with a stab shift left and an increase in ESR, which are more significant in patients with severe course. The most significant increase in the level of leukocytes in the CSF was observed in patients with meningococcal meningitis, and the number of leukocytes less than 1 thousand in 1 μL CSF is a prognostically unfavorable sign. Thus, a detailed analysis of routine clinical and laboratory data makes it possible to assess severity of the patient's condition and predict the course of the disease.

Key words: acute meningitis, meningococcal infection, pneumococcal infection, diagnosis.