Childhood meningitis increases the risk for adult schizophrenia.
OBJECTIVE
We investigated the hypothesis that a meningitic infection in childhood may increase the risk of a psychiatric disorder in adulthood.


METHODS
We conducted a follow-up study of 190 individuals affected by a meningitis infection the first 4 years of life, during an epidemic in São Paulo, Brazil, between 1971 and 1974. As a control group, we investigated 156 siblings of the meningitis patients who were not affected by meningitis at childhood.


RESULTS
In the 190 cases of meningitis, we found eight (4.2%) cases of schizophrenia against none in the controls, and 40 (21.0%) cases of life occurrence of psychotic symptoms compared to 12 (7.6%) cases in the control group (P<0.001). We found no differences between the two groups regarding the occurrence of other psychiatric disorders and of neurological soft signs.


CONCLUSIONS
Meningitis during childhood significantly increased the risk of schizophrenia in particular in adulthood, and of psychosis in general.
Abrahao
André L
AL
Departament of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, University of Sao Paulo, Rua Dr. Ovidio Pires de Campos 785, 05403-010 Sao Paulo, SP, Brazil.
Focaccia
Roberto
R
Gattaz
Wagner F
WF
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001938:Brazil; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D004196:Disease Outbreaks; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D016920:Meningitis, Bacterial / Q000150:complications*; D011618:Psychotic Disorders / Q000209:etiology; D012306:Risk; D012559:Schizophrenia / Q000209:etiology*