Parents should watch for early symptoms of meningitis to speed up diagnosis, treatment and prevent the spread of the most common fatal infection in children in developed countries, researchers said in the Lancet today. Leg pain, cold hands and feet, and abnormal skin color were early signs of the infection in about 72 percent of the 448 children with meningitis studied by Matthew Thompson from the University of Oxford. This may help diagnose a brain infection that can progress from initial symptoms to death within hours. The early signs identified by Thompson are typical for sepsis and shock and precede classic symptoms such as rash, headache, stiff neck, light sensitivity and impaired consciousness, which occur 13 to 22 hours after onset. Parents should look for early signs to diagnose the potentially fatal infection so treatment can start sooner, Thompson said.
