Bacterial meningitis

Bacterial meningitis is life-threatening and needs urgent medical assistance.

Key facts

Meningitis caused by bacteria can be life-threatening and needs urgent medical attention.
Some bacteria that cause meningitis can also cause septicaemia.
Most people who suffer from bacterial meningitis recover, but many can be left with a variety of after-effects.
One in ten people who contract bacterial meningitis will die.
There is no vaccine to protect against all strains of meningitis.
Knowing the signs and symptoms of the disease, trusting your instincts and getting urgent medical help is the best way to protect yourself and others.

Bacterial meningitis causes

There are many different bacteria that can cause meningitis, the most common are;

Meningococcal.
Pneumococcal.
Hib.
TB.
Neonatal – Including Group B Streptococcal and E.coli.

How do you treat bacterial meningitis?

Bacterial meningitis needs urgent treatment with antibiotics and rapid admission to hospital. If treated promptly, bacterial meningitis is less likely to become life-threatening. For more information on this, visit our section on the treatment of meningitis.

Who gets bacterial meningitis and why?

Bacterial meningitis can affect any age group, but is more common in babies and children.

Babies and young children are more at risk because their body’s defences are not fully developed.
If the bacteria invade the body, their immune system cannot provide resistance to fight off infection.

Need more information on bacterial meningitis?

You can speak to experienced staff on our freephone helpline, available 24-hours a day: 0808 80 10 388, or you can email us at helpline@meningitis-trust.org and we will come back to you as soon as we can.