posted
My wife may have been in contact with someone who died from Meningitis recently.
We contacted our doctor to have her checked.
The doctors response was to ask, "Is it Viral or Bacterial."
"I don't know."
"Find out. If its Viral, there is nothing we can do so we don't need to set up an appointment, but if its bacterial we can."
My wife went livid. She wants to know if she has either (she's had a cold that lingers) and is a danger to our son. Should she be upset or was the doctor just trying to save us the expense of a doctors visit?
Posts: 11895 | Registered: Apr 2002
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quote:Viral ("aseptic") meningitis is serious but rarely fatal in persons with normal immune systems. Usually, the symptoms last from 7 to 10 days and the patient recovers completely. Bacterial meningitis, on the other hand, can be very serious and result in disability or death if not treated promptly. Often, the symptoms of viral meningitis and bacterial meningitis are the same. For this reason, if you think you or your child has meningitis, see your doctor as soon as possible.
Seems to me she'd want to know anyway.
quote:How is the virus spread? Enteroviruses, the most common cause of viral meningitis, are most often spread through direct contact with respiratory secretions (e.g., saliva, sputum, or nasal mucus) of an infected person. This usually happens by shaking hands with an infected person or touching something they have handled, and then rubbing your own nose or mouth. The virus can also be found in the stool of persons who are infected. The virus is spread through this route mainly among small children who are not yet toilet trained. It can also be spread this way to adults changing the diapers of an infected infant. The incubation period for enteroviruses is usually between 3 and 7 days from the time you are infected until you develop symptoms. You can usually spread the virus to someone else beginning about 3 days after you are infected until about 10 days after you develop symptoms. Can I get viral meningitis if I’m around someone who has it? The viruses that cause viral meningitis are contagious. Enteroviruses, for example, are very common during the summer and early fall, and many people are exposed to them. However, most infected persons either have no symptoms or develop only a cold or rash with low-grade fever. Only a small proportion of infected persons actually develop meningitis. Therefore, if you are around someone who has viral meningitis, you have a moderate chance of becoming infected, but a very small chance of developing meningitis.
posted
Well, so here we are after 5:00 pm on a Friday and what...you're supposed to call the deceased's relatives and ask if it was viral or bacterial? Honestly...
I can see wanting to know, but it seems like they'd have a better shot finding that out than you would.
Did the person die in the hospital? If so, then I would simply call that hospital and report that you (or rather your wife) was exposed to someone who died of meningitis in their hospital and you want to know exactly what she should be checked for and whether she can come to their facility to have the test done.
If the person didn't die in the hospital, I don't know what you can do short of calling the next of kin, asking for their doctor's name, and put your doctor in touch with their doctor. I mean, I wouldn't give that info out to someone over the phone unless I know them already anyway.
posted
I guess I'm not getting this... if she has no symptoms of meningitis, then there IS nothing to test. Oh, lumbar puncture, lab tests, but that's only for symptomatic people. Or is she sicker since this exposure? A lingering cold doesn't sound much like meningitis
If she had close, extended exposure to meningococcal meningitis, then she should get antibiotics for prevention. Otherwise, nothing needs to be done.
"Chemoprophylaxis is necessary only in close contacts of an isolated case of invasive meningococcal infection. Close contacts include household members and other intimate contacts, children in school environments, coworkers in the same office, young adults in dormitories, and recruits in training centers. In contrast, prophylaxis is not indicated if exposure to the index case is brief. This includes the majority of healthcare workers unless there is direct exposure to respiratory secretions (eg, as with suctioning or intubation)" ---from UpToDate
Posts: 1014 | Registered: Jul 2005
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posted
Furthermore, meningococcal meningitis is a reportable disease. If any tests come back positive for the disease, it gets reported. I'm not sure who to, but the local health department would be the place to call and ask, I think.
Posts: 1014 | Registered: Jul 2005
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posted
Theaca...well shoot! You mean there's no test? That seems crummy.
Drat.
Anyway, wouldn't one doctor calling another doctor work better than the doctor telling the patient to call the deceased's relatives?
Posts: 22497 | Registered: Sep 2000
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posted
No, a doctor can't just tell that information to another doctor unless they are both doctors for that same patient. That would be a hipaa violation! You have to go thru channels. That means either talking to the patient's family or going through the health department, as far as I know.
I mean, think if it were HIV instead of meningitis. It's a reportable disease, but doctors can't just spread the word that someon just died of HIV. It's gotta go through the proper channels.
That process can be expedited if the family wants the information made public. I suppose every county probably handles the privacy aspect differently.
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