QJM : monthly journal of the Association of Physicians
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Suspected meningitis is a frequent reason for admission to hospital in the UK. While bacterial meningitis requires prompt antibiotic therapy to reduce mortality and morbidity, enteroviral meningitis, the most frequent viral cause, is almost invariably a benign disease. ⋯ The proportion of patients with meningitis given pre-hospital antibiotics by GPs is still worryingly low, although early hospital management has improved. Improved diagnostic facilities, particularly viral PCR assays, reduce antibiotic usage and hospital stay, with considerable financial savings.