Just under half of all children who survive meningitis caused by group B Streptococcus will suffer in later years, new research has found.
Bacteria can quickly cause damage to the infant brain, even when they recieve good medical care. The disease was found to cause mental and physiological impairment varying from mild (25% of survivors) to severe (19%). Indications of impairment included blindness, hearing loss, academic underachievement and cerebral palsy.
Researchers hope that the findings will increase awareness of the disease and the need for pregnant women to vaccinate against it.
Tom Hennessy
Retired
These 'after effects' may be related to the lack of Phosphatidylcholine in the brain. It is believed the lack of Phosphatidylcholine which results from the infection is what causes the damage and may be amendable by replacement.
"Bacterial Inhibition of Phosphatidylcholine Synthesis Triggers Apoptosis in the Brain"
"Supplementation with lyso-phosphatidylcholine prevents cell death"
"We conclude that bacterial inhibition of PtdCho biosynthesis activates an apoptotic cascade that is a causative event in pathogenesis and amenable to therapeutic intervention."