Viral meningitis - and finding out health information

I have just come back from the hospital visiting my second son who has been diagnosed with viral meningitis. He is an adult and how he came to contract this illness is unknown. Meningitis can affect anyone, any time. His main symptom was the worst headache he had ever had and fortunately his girlfriend took him to a city hospital - just round the corner from their flat. My son is nearly 30 and works in hospitality - he has contact with many hundreds of people a week so how he got this virus will never be known. It is believed that it is passed on via coughs and sneezes - respiratory secretions - and poor hygiene.
It is worth knowing that the symptoms are similar to the more deadly bacterial meningitis and include

• headache,
• nausea or vomiting,
• fever,
• general malaise,
• neck stiffness,
• an aversion to bright lights,
• joint aches and pains,
• muscle aches,
• drowsiness or confusion,
• and also may include a rash, sore throat, stomach pains and diarrhoea.

The symptoms may occur in any order and may not all be present at the same time or during the course of the illness.
Treatment is rest and treating the symptoms.
Viral meningitis is an uncommon complication of mumps, measles and chicken pox - childhood diseases that can be immunised against. You can find out about these immunisations on The Immunisation Infoline 800 671 811, or visit Immunise Australia.
In seeking information about meningitis I went to my favourite health website - Health Insite. This is a government site that sifts and provides trustworth information from health sites around the country. Well worth book marking. I also found the Meningitis Centre website for The Meningitis Centre. whose mission statment includes: "By making all parents aware of the symptoms and the need to immunise their children, we believe the present impact of meningitis on the nation can be dramatically reduced. This is a vision we share with our foundation partner, the Telethon Institute for Child Health Research."