Viral Meningitis

Meningitis is an infection in the fluid (cerebrospinal fluid) that covers your brain and spinal cord. It may cause headache, stiff neck, irritability, fever, drowsiness, nausea and vomiting.

Most cases of meningitis are caused by bacteria or viruses. Bacterial meningitis is more serious. It may cause permanent complications. You would need to be treated in the hospital with antibiotics. Viral meningitis is much less serious. It rarely causes any complications. You can take care of a mild case at home.

Most cases of viral meningitis are passed from person to person through coughing, sneezing and close contact. West Nile virus is a rare cause of viral meningitis. It is passed by mosquito bites.

Antibiotics are not used to treat viral meningitis. You may be given other medicines to treat your symptoms. It will take 2 to 7 days to recover from viral meningitis. You may have headaches that come and go for up to 2 weeks.

In rare cases, what looks like viral meningitis may turn out to be early bacterial meningitis. That is why it is important to be rechecked. Call your healthcare provider or come back to this facility if your symptoms get worse or new symptoms appear. 

Home care

Follow these tips when taking care of yourself at home:

• Rest in bed until you are feeling better. Stay home from school or work for at least 7 days, or until all symptoms are gone.
• Use acetaminophen (Tylenol) or ibuprofen (Motrin) for fever and to relieve pain, unless another pain medicine was prescribed. Note: If you have chronic liver or kidney disease, talk with your healthcare provider before taking these medicines. Also, talk with your provider if you have had a stomach ulcer or gastrointestinal bleeding. Do not give aspirin to anyone younger than 18 years old who is ill with a fever. It may cause severe liver damage.
• If you have a fever, drink extra water, sports drinks or other fluids. This will keep you from getting dehydrated.
• Wash your hands often with soap and water to prevent spreading the infection.

Follow-up care

Follow up with your healthcare provider, or as advised. This is to make sure you are getting better as expected.

When to seek medical advice

Call your healthcare provider right away if any of these occur:

• Headache or stiff neck that gets worse
• You are not able to keep fluids down because of vomiting
• Fever of 100.4°F (38°C) or higher that does not get better after you take fever medicine. or as advised

Call 911 right away if you experience:

• Drowsiness, confusion, or bizarre behavior
• Weakness or numbness in an arm or leg
• Difficulty speaking, swallowing, or walking
• Seizure