Relapsing bacterial meningitis in adults

Relapsing bacterial meningitis is a rare condition, diagnosedin eight patients between 1981 and 1993 at our institution.These accounted for 3.4% of 234 adult patients with blood and/orcerebrospinal fluid culture-proven bacterial meningitis. A reviewof the English-language literature from 1966 to the presentrevealed only five further adult cases of relapsing bacterialmeningitis with in-depth case histories. Of these 13 total patients,nine were female and four male, aged 17–61 years. Tenwere neurosurgical patients. Gram-negative bacilli, especiallyKlebsiella species, were the commonest micro-organisms identifiedfor both the initial episode and the relapse of infection. Threepatients died in the course of relapse. Four or more weeks ofantibiotic therapy may be needed to treat post-surgical patientswith Gram-negative bacillary meningitis. Even a normal cerebrospinalfluid study at the end of treatment of bacterial meningitisis not a guarantee of freedom from relapse.