Question

If a patient has a positive Kernig sign, is their diagnosis a form of meningitis or can encephalitis also be a cause?

Answer 1

Kerning's sign was a Russian neurologist which described it positive when the thigh is flexed at the hip at the go-degree angles and subsequent extension orthe knee which leads to the resistance which can also cause subarachnad haemorrhage. It indicates the presence or meningitis is done to the person that lie flat on the back, flex the thigh so that it is the right angle to the trunk.

The symptoms of meningitis may mimic flu type and it can develop over several hours or over a few days, some of the symptoms include a sudden rise in the fever, stiff neck, severe headache, nausea and vomiting confusion and sleepiness no appetite and skin rashes .

Meningeal signs include nuchal rigidity (severe neck stiffness), Kernig’s sign (flexing the hip and extending the knee elicits pain in the back and legs), and Brudzinski’s sign (passive neck flexion elicits involuntary hip flexion.)

The clinical presentation of patients with encephalitis can be similar to patients with meningitis, although encephalitis is characterized by the presence of altered mental status or focal neurologic findings.