There are two major types of meningitis; meningococcal and pneumococcal.
There are many things that can cause this. A drug allergy, some types of cancer or an inflammatory diseases. Bacteria can be also be a cause of meningitis; it's a bacteria that lives in the back of the nose and throat, or in the upper respiratory tract. It could also be caused by a viral infection, or even a fungal infection.
The bacteria are spread around by coughing, sneezing and kissing. However the same bacteria can't survive outside the body for long, so they cannot be picked up from water supplies, swimming pools, or air ventilation systems.
Scarily enough, there are people out there that are actually carrying the bacteria for days, weeks, or months without showing any symptoms. It rare, but it does happen, the bacteria can overcome the body's defenses and invade the cerebra spinal fluid, causing meningitis.
Meningococcal meningitis has a 75% rate when it comes to death, where as pneumococcal meningitis only has a 20% rate, but it can lead to pneumonia, brain damage and several other things.
Hope I helped, stay safe.
Sarah
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