Eosinophilic meningitis is a rare type of meningitis that manifests itself after eating the meat of animals contaminated with the parasite Angiostrongylus cantonensis , which infests the snail, slug, crab or giant African snail. But in addition, the consumption of food contaminated with the secretion released by snails can also cause this disease.
After ingesting this parasite or the food contaminated with these secretions, the person may present symptoms such as severe headache, nausea, vomiting and stiff neck and, in this case, must go to the emergency room to be treated.
Treatment is usually done with pain relievers to relieve headaches and corticosteroids to treat inflammation of the tissues that line the central nervous system.
Main symptoms
The most common symptoms of eosinophilic meningitis include:
- Severe headache; Stiff neck, pain and difficulty in moving the neck; Nausea and vomiting; Low fever; Tingling in the trunk, arms and legs; Mental confusion.
Faced with these symptoms, the person must immediately go to the hospital to have a test called a lumbar puncture, which consists of removing a small amount of CSF from the spinal cord. This test is able to identify if this liquid is contaminated, and if it is, by which micro-organism, which is essential to decide how the treatment will be done.
Learn more about how lumbar puncture is performed.
How the treatment is done
Treatment for eosinophilic meningitis should be done while in hospital and is usually done with antiparasitic drugs, pain relievers, to relieve headaches, and corticosteroids, to treat inflammation of meningitis, which affects the membranes surrounding the brain and the spinal cord, called meninges, and is also useful for lowering brain pressure.
If the pressure in the brain does not decrease with medication, the doctor may perform several lumbar punctures to relieve pressure more effectively.
When the treatment is not done as soon as possible, the patient may have sequelae, such as loss of vision and hearing or decreased muscle strength, especially in the arms and legs. See what other possible consequences of meningitis.
What causes eosinophilic meningitis
Eosinophilic meningitis is caused by parasites that are transmitted to humans as follows:
- The small larvae lodge in the intestines of the rats, being eliminated through their feces; the snail feeds on the rat's feces, ingesting the parasite; when consuming the contaminated snail or food contaminated with its secretions the parasite arrives in the bloodstream of the man and reaches his brain, causing meningitis.
Thus, it is possible to contract this meningitis when:
- They eat undercooked mollusks, such as snails, snails or slugs that are contaminated with larvae; They eat foods, such as vegetables, legumes or poorly washed fruits that are contaminated with the secretions released by snails and slugs to move; They eat freshwater prawns, crabs and frogs that fed on infected mollusks.
After the person ingests the larvae, they go through the bloodstream to the brain, causing this meningitis.
How to protect yourself
To protect yourself and not be contaminated with the parasite that causes eosinophilic meningitis, it is important not to consume animals that are contaminated, but as it is not possible to identify whether an animal is contaminated, just by its appearance, it is not recommended to eat this type of animal.
In addition, to avoid this disease, you should wash all vegetables and fruits that may be contaminated with the secretions left by the slugs, for example.
Snails usually appear in rainy seasons, have no natural predators and reproduce very quickly, being easily found in gardens and backyards even in large cities. Therefore, to eliminate slugs and snails it is recommended to place them in a completely closed plastic bag, breaking its shell. The animal is not able to survive more than 2 days enclosed in a plastic bag where it cannot drink water and feed. It is not recommended to put salt on top of them because it will cause their dehydration, releasing intense secretion, which can contaminate the environment around them.
