Clinical Insights and Outcomes in Community-Acquired Acute Bacterial Meningitis versus Postoperative Bacterial Meningitis.

Objective: To compare the demographics, clinical characteristics, and in-hospital mortality rates between community-acquired bacterial meningitis cases and postoperative bacterial meningitis.

Study design: Analytical study. Place and Duration of the Study: Department of Infectious Diseases and Clinical Microbiology, Diskapi Yildirim Beyazit Training and Research Hospital, Ankara, Turkiye, from 2016 to 2022.

Methodology: A total of 153 patients diagnosed with bacterial meningitis were included and categorised into two groups: 95 (62.1%) with community-acquired bacterial meningitis (CABM) and 58 (37.9%) with postoperative bacterial meningitis (POBM). Demographics, clinical features, laboratory, paraclinical findings, treatments, and outcomes of the cases were compared. Data were retrieved using a standard data collection form from the electronic medical records.

Results: A substantial portion (58.8%) of all patients had comorbidities. Fever was the common symptom in all groups. Headache, neck stiffness, nausea, and vomiting were more often observed in the CABM group (p <0.001). Upon admission, the CABM exhibited higher levels of white blood cell count, C-reactive protein, and procalcitonin (p = 0.017, p = 0.004, p = 0.007, respectively). Overall 33.1% had positive cerebrospinal fluid cultures. The overall mortality rate was 26.8%. POBM was associated with longer hospital and intensive care unit (ICU) stays (p <0.001). Shorter treatment durations, lower Glasgow coma scale scores (GCS), higher Charlson Comorbidity Index values, and elevated markers of inflammation were related to mortality.

Conclusion: This study illuminates the differences in clinical presentations and outcomes between community-acquired and postoperative bacterial meningitis. It also suggests that factors such as lower GCS scores, comorbidities, and elevated inflammation markers at the last follow-up may be associated with unfavourable clinical outcomes in bacterial meningitis.

Key words: Postoperative meningitis, Central nervous system infection, Cerebrospinal fluid, Antibiotics.