Meningitis...

Yep, both of my kids have now had meningitis.

Jenna - At 3 weeks old had viral meningitis. It is the less severe of the two. She basically caught a virus and had little to no antibodies to fight it off. The virus then went to her spinal column/brain and voila menigitis. She was in the PICU on antibiotics for 24 hours until they determined that it was viral and then on a regular floor for 2 more days for observation.

Jackson - At 6 weeks got meningitis. They never determined if it was bacterial or viral b/c his blood counts were very high but the cultures never grew anything so they treated him for bacterial. He was in the hospital for 1 week and then at home with a PICC line so I could give him antibiotics for a week. His was much more severe than hers and he looked much worse.

The worst part for both was the testing. They had a spinal tap, urine catheter and IV's. Jackson's IV was in his head b/c he was so chubby.

The dr's have no idea why both of my kids have had it. They said that it was like lightening striking the same person twice... very rare but could happen. Here is a good website with clear information...

http://kidshealth.org/parent/infections/lung/meningitis.html