Meningitis

Meningitis is a potentially fatal inflammation of the meninges, or membranes, covering the brain and spinal cord. The causative organisms, usually bacterial or viral, gain access to the cerebrospinal fluid and follow the space around vessels. The epidemic disease called
Transmission is by direct contact between people. The initial symptoms of meningitis are extreme headache, rapidly rising fever, stiffness of the neck, and extreme irritability and drowsiness. Further progression depends on the causative agents and the health of the host. The patient may experience deafness, muscle weakness in the face, and other sign of nerve paralysis.

Convulsions, mental retardation, and behavioral disturbances may also occur, and may remain in some cases. Many patients recover fully. Diagnosis is often made by lumbar puncture (spinal tap), whereby direct access is gained to the site of infection. Special stains and culture of the extracted fluid will often identify the specific organism so that proper therapy vaccine against. Haemophilus influenzae
Classification of neoplasm as either benign or malignant relates to their behavior. A benign neoplasm, for instance, is encapsulated; malignant neoplasms are not. Malignancies grow more rapidly than do benign forms and invade adjacent, normal tissue. Tissue of a benign tumor is structured similarly to the tissue from which it is derived; malignant tissue has an abnormal and unstructured appearance. Most malignant tumors, in fact, show abnormalities in chromosome structure, that is, the structure of the DNA molecules that constitute the genetic materials duplicated and passed on the later generations of cells. Most important, benign neoplasm do not metastasize, that is, begin to grow at sites other than the point of origin, whereas malignant tumors do. The term cancer always denotes a malignant neoplasm, whereas the term of Tumor indicates a readily defined mass of tissue distinguishable from normal living tissue.