Viral Meningitis

I was recently tasked with researching the differences between “viral meningitis”, “bacterial meningitis”, “cerebritis” and “encephalitis”. Here is what my research uncovered.

Meningitis is an inflammation of the membranes that cover the brain and spinal cord. It is generally caused by an infection, either viral or bacterial. Viral meningitis is typically less severe than bacterial meningitis and clears up on its own. Bacterial meningitis can be treated with antibiotics if it is caught early on.

Cerebritis and encephalitis are inflammations of the brain itself, as opposed to meningitis which is an inflammation of the covering membranes. The terms “cerebritis” and “encephalitis” are closely linked. The term “cerebritis” typically infers a bacterial cause. Another distinction is that cerebritis is associated with focal abscesses and encephalitis refers to a more diffuse swelling.

To add to the confusion, the term “cerebritis” has also been used to describe the much less specific condition of “an inflammation of the brain”. It is my (non-expert) opinion that this definition is much too broad and that cerebritis should be used to describe the specific conditions described above.

Some of the sources for my research came from:
http://www.medcyclopaedia.com/library/topics/volume_vi_1/e/encephalitis.aspx

http://www.cdc.gov/meningitis/about/faq.html

http://medical-dictionary.thefreedictionary.com/cerebritis