Does viral menigitis affect your memory if ... - Meningitis Now
Does viral menigitis affect your memory if you were an infant when you had it?
I had it as an adult and my memory is definitely affected, there are huge swathes of my life I can't remember and pretty much a 6 month hole in my memory after I had VM. Although children's brains are wired differently as they develop, to adults I think it may be reasonable to assume that the developing brain of a child may very be affected by the impact of VM. Sometimes these things do not become evident until later on in adult life. The brain is pretty much the least understood of all the human organs by the medical profession so there's still things being found out about it every year. In the medical profession there is a generally held belief that VM is a mild disease but it can have debilitating effects which a lot of survivors, me included, have battled to get recognised for some years. The Meningitis Trust VM week starting on 6th May will help I'm sure.
Hi there, Jonad puts it very well. My memory without doubt has been affected by BM, though I think as adults we are able to hide lots of memory loss by our social epititude and adult "tricks" whch children may not be able to do. My nephew had Bacterial Meningitis as a 4 year old and his memory was most definitely affected, even as a young adult his mum (my sister) was really concerned about his memory and had to remind him about the most obvious thngs. However having said that he ran his own business (with the help of his mum!) and is now married with children and very independent well and happy. The brain takes lots of time to heal and as JOnad says it is the least understood, neurologists often just dont know the recovery pattern, so I would say time time time, the great healer.
Good luck for you and your son
