The main goal bacterial meningitis treatments are to overcome the cause of the disease and to alleviate signs and symptoms caused by the disease. The most common treatment of this type of meningitis is giving specific antibiotics to kill the bacteria. Several other treatments are dedicated to reduce the symptoms such as giving the painkiller, and corticosteroid to reduce the inflammation at the affected area.
Bacterial meningitis is an infection that affected at spinal cord and brain membrane. Commonly it causes by Streptococcus pnuemoniae or Neisseria meningitides. Beside bacteria, meningitis can also caused by viral called as viral meningitis and fungal called as fungal meningitis. Someone who experiences the disease will experience bacterial meningitis symptoms such as high grade fever, headache, neck stiff, purple or red skin rash, vomiting, nausea, and sometime it caused photophobia or high sensitivity to bright lights.
Drugs for bacterial meningitis treatments
1. Vancomycin. This type of antibiotic is an FDA approved drug for bacterial meningitis. This type of antibiotics commonly use with or without Rimfapin and usually it also use in someone who Penicillin resistant. The drug injected into the blood stream and enter the cerebral spinal fluid to hit the Streptococcus pnuemoniae.
2. Ciprofloxacin. This type of bacterial meningitis treatments is grouped as fluroquinolone. Once it entered the patient body, it will distribute throughout the body including the brain and cerebral spinal fluid to reach the cause of the disease. Expert said that this drug is not recommended in children.
3. Dophamin. This drug is not intended to kill the bacteria but it used to maintain blood pressure and adequate circulation. Often the patients who experience the disease have serious problem related to the increased intracranial pressure secondary to cerebral edema.
4. Corticosteroid. This drug is commonly given by VI early treatment. The main purpose of this one type of bacterial meningitis treatments is to manage and control brain swelling and pressure also reduce the inflammation on the affected area.
Image source: neuropathology-web.org
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