Unusual presentation of meningococcal meningitis in the elderly and utility of CSF PCR testing

Elizabeth Ranson; Hannah Ship; Omai Garner; Shangxin Yang; Debika Bhattacharya

doi:10.1099/acmi.0.000158

Unusual presentation of meningococcal meningitis in the elderly and utility of CSF PCR testing

Access Microbiol. 2020 Aug 12;2(10):acmi000158. doi: 10.1099/acmi.0.000158. eCollection 2020.

Authors

Elizabeth Ranson¹, Hannah Ship¹, Omai Garner², Shangxin Yang², Debika Bhattacharya¹

Affiliations

¹ Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, USA.
² Clinical Microbiology Laboratory, Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, UCLA Medical Center, Los Angeles, USA.

Abstract

We present an unusual case of a previously healthy 74-year-old man who presented with diffuse weakness, severe myalgias, petechial palmar rash and hypotension, but without fever, altered mental status, nuchal rigidity or headache, who was ultimately found through PCR testing to have meningococcal meningitis.

Keywords: PCR test; elderly meningitis; meningococcal meningitis; multiplex PCR.

Publication types

Case Reports