Editor’s Note: We believe that patients are a key part of developing and leading the conversation in disease communities. Patient Worthy sometimes partners with reputable agencies that wish to speak with patients about opportunities related to their diagnosed conditions. These opportunities can include activities such as sharing stories with other patients or health professionals about their diagnosis journey or recording video testimonials. To learn more about how to get involved with an opportunity for Meningitis patients or caretakers, click here.

October 5, 2023 is globally recognized as World Meningitis Day, an event to help spread awareness about meningitis, an infectious disease that causes potentially fatal inflammation affecting the spinal cord and brain. This is a time to spread awareness about meningitis among the general population and in the medical field. Meningitis organizations around the world, such as the Meningitis Research Foundation, are making it easy to help take part in the event this year and help spread awareness about this dangerous and poorly understood illness.

A Global Effort

Meningitis is a global health concern that is responsible for hundreds of thousands of deaths every year. The World Health Organization (WHO) has even put together a Global Road Map to Defeat Meningitis by 2030. Click here to read more about it.

Here are some ways that you can spread awareness about this disease and play your part on October 5:

1. Speak up to save a life. Most people don’t know the symptoms of meningitis. You can help educate others using the Meningitis Research Foundation’s digital toolkit, which can be found here. The kit includes images and explainers that are perfect for sharing on your social media profiles and many of them are available in multiple languages.
2. Are you a meningitis survivor? Sharing your story can be a powerful way to spread awareness and the WHO is looking for 2,030 patients to tell their stories as part of their Global Road Map. Click here to learn more.
3. Light the road ahead. Share pictures of something that you’ve decorated with lights at 20:30 on the 5th. This can include trees, balloons, landmarks, buildings, or even just a candle. Click here to learn more.
4. Contact local leaders. Reach out to politicians on the local, state, and national level and ask them to help spread awareness day with posts about World Meningitis Day on their social media profiles. Click here to learn more.
5. Give what you can. Donate to World Meningitis Day to contribute to the fight against this dangerous disease. Click here to get started.

About Meningitis

Meningitis is a disease in which the protective membranes around the spinal cord and brain, known as the meninges, become inflamed. Because of how close the inflammation is to the spine and brain, meningitis constitutes a medical emergency that must be addressed in a timely fashion. Meningitis can appear from a diverse array of causes such as certain drugs and infection from certain microbes, such as fungi, viruses, and bacteria. Characteristic symptoms of the disease include headaches, stiff neck, and an altered state of consciousness. Other symptoms include fever, intolerance of loud noises and light, and vomiting. Without prompt treatment, meningitis can inflict long-term problems such as cognitive disability, deafness, and epilepsy. Treatment depends on the cause, but if the disease is suspected, antibiotics are recommended as soon as possible, even if the definite diagnosis hasn’t been confirmed. In the Western world, bacterial meningitis is rare. To learn more about meningitis, click here.