An Epidemic of Aseptic Meningitis in Summer 1996 and Global Analysis and Comparision of It with 1993

Chung, Jung Ah; Kim, Young Jun; Choi, Ha Joo; Chung, Woo Kap

Abstract

PURPOSE
In the Summer 1996, there was an outbreak of aseptic meningitis without sequele. 116 cases who were admitted to our Department during a six month period from May to October, 1996. Therefore, we report epidemic of aseptic meningitis in 1996 and analyze and compare it with a epidemic of aseptic meningitis in 1993.
METHODS
We studies about clinical manefestation and laboratory finding by retrospective study on 116 patients diagnosed as aseptic meningitis who had been admitted at Department of Pediatrics, Kangnam Sacred Heart Hospital, College of Medicine, Hallym University.
RESULTS
1) Aseptic meningitis affected mostly children between the ages of 1 to 5 in 1996. Male-to-female ratio was 1.2 : 1 in aseptic meningitis in 1996. 2) The outbreak of aseptic meningitis was from middle to late August in 1996.3) Common chief complaints were fever, headache, vomiting, abdominal pain, upper respiratory tract infection, diarrhea, and irritibility in order. On physical examination, pharyngeal injection, neck stiffness, Kernig's sign were detected in decreasing frequency. 4) Values of WBC on peripheral blood were 5000-10,000/mm3 (60 cases, 51.7%) and values of ESR were more than 20mm/Hr (70 cases, 60.3%) and values of CRP positivity were 58 cases (50.0%) in 1996. In comparision with its in 1996, more than 10,000/mm3 in values of WBC and less than 20mm/hr in values of ESR and negativity in CRP values were detected mostly in 1993. 5) 176 cerebrospinal fluid studies were done. WBC count in cerebrospinal fluid were 6-75,000/mm3 (754+/-2351/mm3) and peaked on eighth days of onset of illness and decreased afterwards. Pleocytosis of cerebrospinal fluid were had of mean value 27.2% and peaked on first days of onset of aseptic meningitis. On virus culture, six cases were cultured in that one case of coxsakie virus, two cases of echo virus and six cases of nonspecific enterovirus and on enterovirus PCR, the positivity were 49 cases (41.0%). 6) 76 cases of who were diagnosed as aseptic meningitis were treated with antibiotics and 18 cases treated with mannitol for severe headache. None cases reported with seizure or decreased consciousness. The disease course mostly were three to seven days.
CONCLUSIONS
We concluded that the causative agents of outbreak of aseptic meningitis in our hospital in 1996 were enterovirus and on virus culture, echo virus 9 and coxsackie virus A24 were cultured. Recently in our state, outbreak of aseptic meningitis epidemically in summer season and the causative viruses are cultured variably and various clinical symptoms and signs are manafested as well as.