The bacteria can be tested for susceptibility to treatment with different antibiotics. The sugar level, an increase in protein, and the number and type of white blood cells in the fluid also help determine the type of infection. Besides performing a spinal tap, doctors may culture samples of blood, urine, nasal and throat mucus, and pus from skin infections to help make the diagnosis. When treatment is started immediately, fewer than 10 percent of people with bacterial meningitis die. But when the diagnosis or treatment is delayed, permanent brain damage or death becomes more likely, especially in very young children and the elderly.
Most people recover fully, but some develop seizures that require lifelong treatment.
Permanent mental impairment and paralysis may also follow a bout of meningitis. Chronic Meningitis Chronic meningitis is a brain infection that produces inflammation in the meninges lasting a month or longer. Chronic meningitis usually affects people whose immune system is impaired because of AIDS, cancer, other severe diseases, anticancer drugs, or long-term use of prednisone. Causes Some infectious organisms may invade the brain and grow over a long time, gradually causing symptoms and damage. The most common are the fungus Cryptococcus, cytomegalovirus, the virus that causes AIDS, and the bacteria that cause tuberculosis, syphilis, and Lyme disease.