Staphylococcal meningitis and abscess associated with intracranial Foreign body, as a late complication of cranial trauma

Abstract

SummaryReport of the case of a patient who presented a meningitis associated with a brain abscess as the result of a head injury which occm'red several months beforehand and which, although it seemed trivial at the time, resulted in the penetration into the brain of an unsuspected foreign body. The possibilities of prevention and treatment of such complications are discussed and the necessity for a careful exploration of any penetreting wound of the face even after a trivial head injury is stressed.Injuries to the head and face, especially those occurring in industrial and traffic accidents, represent an important health problem. The seriousness of the problem is magnified when these injuries are complicated by infections of the brain or meninges.In most cases, posttraumatic bacterial meningitis are caused byDiplococcus pneumoniae which has been found responsible for 50~o to 80% of the cases approximately 1, 2. This occurs usually when the injury consists of a fracture with a dural tear producing a fistula, which then serves as a portal of entry for microorganisms. Penetrating wounds of the brain are followed by severe brain infection more rarely a. Experience with head wounds in World War II demonstrated that with 9*