Neisseria Meningitis Case Study

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Meningitis infection is the inflammation of the membrane that covers the brain and spinal cord. Neisseria Meningitidis can cause severe infectious bacterial meningitis in children and immune-compromised patients. Humans are the only reservoir of N. meningitidis, and it can easily spread through kissing, sneezing, coughing, direct contact or living in the same house. The symptoms may include fever, chills, stiff neck, and severe headache.
About 30% of the population has N. meningitidis as normal flora in the nasopharyngeal area. However, when the host immune mechanism is weak, it can gain access to the meninges. The invasion of the meninges usually happens when N. meningitidis enters the bloodstream which leads the organism to reach the Cerebrospinal …show more content…

A normal CSF sample is always crystal clear. A cloudy CSF indicates the presence of WBCs, microorganisms, and protein. The sample is collected in three or four sterile tubes, numbered in the order of collection, and screw-capped tubes. The tube number one is usually sent to the chemical and serology testing because of the contamination from the spinal tap least effects the tests. Tube 2 is used to look for the presence of Microorganism and has to be at the room temperature. In the hematology lab, tube number three is used to count the red and white blood cells. The cell counts need to be done in an hour because RBCs and WBCs start to degrade within an …show more content…

Under the gram stain, N. meningitidis is a gram-negative diplococcus and often found within the PMN. This bacterium grows on both chocolate and blood agar culture plates. The colonies of N. meningitidis are mucoid gray and have a greenish tinge to it, whereas a non-pathogenic Neisseria colonies are dry looking. In the biochemical testing, N. meningitidis is oxidase and catalase positive. In carbohydrates utilization test, N. meningitidis is glucose and maltose positive. However, some strains of this bacterium are maltose negative. Immunologic tests are useful to see the antigen of N.

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