HOME HEALTH GUIDE

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume 77, 29 August 1942, Page 4

HOME HEALTH GUIDE

MENINGITIS <.By the Health Dept.) The recent reported increases in the incidence of meningitis in the Dominion focuses attention once more on one of the most serious of infectious diseases. There is no need to feel any undue alarm at this upward movement, which is invariably noticed during wartime when there are large concentrations of men in camps; but it is just as well to be prepared, because immediate and skilled treatment is essential if it is to be successfully checked.

Chilling bodily fatigue and strain are liable to render a person open to active infection, because they lower bodily resistance. Meningitis flourishes in crowded conditions. It is wise, therefore, to keep the children away from crowds. Knowledge of the symptoms is invaluable, and may make the difference between life and death. A violent headache, a rapid rise in temperature (as much as 102 to 104 on the first day) rigidity of the neck, nausea and vomiting are the principal characteristics of the onset of meningitis. Doctors confirm their diagnosis of it by a lumbar puncture —that is, the drawing off of some of the spinal fluid, where the meningococcus lodges, for test.

There are several types of meningitis, ranging from the epidemic, or common type, to the fulminating type, which is swift and tragic.

Don’t take any chances if the signs are suspicious. Delay might enable the germ to carry out its deadly object of piercing the brain covering. Get the doctor at once. He knows what to do, and has modern hospital aids at his command. (Cut this out you may need it.)