Bacterial meningitis can be severe and fatal and therefore requires immediate antibiotic treatment. If you notice symptoms of meningitis, do not delay, consult a doctor or go to the accident and emergency department immediately.
After-effects
An invasive meningococcal disease can evolve into severe forms.
After-effects occur in 10% of survivors, but the proportion varies with age:
- deafness
- necrosis of the skin (sometimes with a risk of amputation)
- amputation (septicaemia)
- epilepsy
- a range of neurological problems (speech disorders, learning difficulties, developmental delay, paralysis)
- renal insufficiency.
Fatality
An invasive meningococcal disease can be very serious because it evolves rapidly and can kill in just a few hours.
The fatality rate of invasive meningococcal diseases is between 5 and 10% and up to 40% in the case of septicaemia.