How Have Advances in Technology Changed Meningitis?

As an infection of the body, meningococcal meningitis causes a swelling of the material that coats the spinal cord and brain. Left untreated, patients can die from the condition. To complicate matters, variations include a bacterial and a viral version of meningitis. The bacterial version causes the most concern since it involves deadly reactions while the viral meningitis will go away by itself.

Current Status

• Meningitis, even into modern times, continues to challenge medical technology and related study. According to the New York Times, on average between 1,400 and 2,800 infection occur annually. Transmitted by sinus and throat fluids via coughing, sneezing, and nose-wiping without washing hands, meningitis travels well in crowded conditions. It also frequently gets confused in primary diagnosis exams as the flu.

Schools and Crowding Concerns

• Colleges and high schools tend to be the most vulnerable given the high density of kids and young people in the same place simultaneously or living close. Per the New York Times, as many as almost 400 die from the condition annually. Recovery for those who survive is not a clean card either; 1 out 5 can have permanent disabilities result from meningitis.

Chemical Scanning

• Recent chemical technology has improved the ability to identify meningitis early, which sometimes can be confused on early diagnosis with a bad flu condition. Using comparisons between the chemical makeup of body fluids in normal state and when the body is suffering infection, doctors can use mass spectrometry and nuclear magnetic resonance to glean out identifiers of meningitis. Like an investigator finding a criminal fingerprint, the scanning approach flags markers of the infection, even distinguishing bacterial from viral versions.

Vaccine Approach

• The medical field continues to approach response to meningitis with vaccine medicines. Widespread vaccine protection first began distribution in the 1980s with the introduction of Menomune. However, Menomune only boosted the immune system for up to five years at best. By 2005 a better vaccine, Menactra, gained traction and Federal Drug Administration approval in vaccine development, being longer-lasting in effect (up to 10 years).

Not Perfect

• Vaccine technology as of August 2010 does not provide a cure-all. Menactra kills the bacteria of only 80 percent of the common strains of bacterial meningitis. One strain, Serotype B, still runs rampant. As a result, scientists continue to build on the benefits of early identification as a primary defense.