The name Meningitis comes from the part of the body known as the meninges. The meninges is a thin layer which surrounds the brain and spinal cord. Meningitis is caused by bacteria infecting infecting the meninges. Although several bacteria can cause meningitis, the most prominent one is Neisseria meningitidis. Neisseria meningitidis can cause large epidemics. The disease spreads through droplets of respiratory fluids. This means that anyone who lives with or comes in contact with the person can be exposed through sneezing, coughing, or any contact. Symptoms include headaches, vomiting, light sensitivity, and stiff neck. It is often treated with Penicillin, though other antibiotics can be used as well. When Meningitis epidemics strike in Africa oily chloramphenicol is often used as a treatment.(http://www.who.int/mediacentre/factsheets/fs141/en/)
It seems that the disease would be difficult to recognize when it shows up sporadically in nations such as the U.S., New Zealand, and Spain. Although it would most likely be treated with antibiotics anyway, would it not? That's something to check out. My group and I are interested in possibly doing a comparison of the treatment and social response to Meningitis in richer areas and poorer areas, such as the Meningitis belt.
Above is a map of the meningitis belt. It was stolen from this website:
(Don't tell or they'll send the United Nations Country Team in Ethiopia after me.)
The WHO's page on Meningitis (linked above) says that much of the epidemic problem in the meningitis belt of sub-Saharan Africa is caused by the social situation and overcrowding. Though this is horrible, it makes the area a very possible candidate for the geographic region we study for this project.
Miles, Raya, and I talked about a few different ideas for our essential question and final product today. Our ideas for the product still need a lot of work. For the question, we are trying to decided what region we want to focus on and whether we want to do a comparison of two or several. I think we ought to do a comparison between Meningitis in richer nations and poorer nations. Though I think there would be plenty of work and information if we just focused on the Meningitis Belt.
1 comment:
I like hearing the brainstorming and thought process behind the way you're developing your ideas for the project. Something you might also consider is at the end of each post putting a note about what the next step in your research will be. That way, the next time you sit down to work, you'll know right where you left off. Otherwise, good work.
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