Meningitis

Your healthcare provider will diagnose meningitis by doing a physical exam, asking you about your symptoms and testing your cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). They may also ask you if you’ve been around anyone with certain illnesses or traveled recently, get a blood or poop (stool) sample, swab your nose or throat or get imaging of your brain.

What tests will be done to diagnose meningitis?

Some tests your healthcare provider may use to diagnose meningitis include:

• Nasal or throat swab. Your provider uses a soft-tipped stick (swab) to take a sample from your nose or throat. A lab will test your sample for signs of infection.
• Lumbar puncture/spinal tap. Your healthcare provider inserts a needle into your lower back to collect a sample of your cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). A lab tests your CSF sample for signs of infection.
• Blood tests. Your provider takes a sample of blood from your arm with a needle. A lab tests your blood for signs of infection.
• Your healthcare provider can use a CT scan or MRI to take pictures of your brain and look for inflammation. This is sometimes called a brain scan.
• Stool sample. You give a sample of your poop (stool) to your provider. A lab will test your stool sample for signs of infection.