14 Known Symptoms of Viral Meningitis

A fact that many may or may not know is that the overwhelming majority of meningitis cases in the United States are viral rather than fungal, parasitic, or bacterial. While there are certainly meningitis cases caused by other factors, viral cases are the most common because there are many diseases that could lead to the development of meningitis.

These include measles, mumps, chickenpox, shingles, both varieties of herpes simplex, and even West Nile virus. With so many different viruses that can cause viral meningitis, it should come as no surprise that they’re the most common type of case.

Much like any other viral condition, the key to treating viral meningitis is early diagnosis and equally early treatment. The sooner you begin your antiviral treatment, the less danger you’ll be in from meningitis. Today we’re going to take a look at the eight common symptoms of viral meningitis. Let’s get into it.

1. Fever

One of the first symptoms that you’ll notice when dealing with viral meningitis is a fever. After all, your body’s default response to most viral infections is to raise your core temperature to try and kill the invading pathogens off, thus leading to a fever. Of course, there are many other things that could cause a fever.

A common culprit is the influenza virus. In reality, many things can cause a fever and most of the time it isn’t a major issue so there’s no need to panic as soon as your body temperature rises. On the other hand, you should still take due diligence when you notice a fever coming on. While it’s most likely not an issue, it could be caused by viral meningitis, and that’s not a chance you should take so calling your doctor is advised.