Meningitis in Spanish

What it means

Meningitis is inflammation of the thin tissue that surrounds the brain and spinal cord, called the meninges. There are several types. The most common is viral meningitis. Bacterial meningitis is rare but can be deadly; it can cause stroke, hearing loss, and brain damage. Meningitis can get serious very quickly: MedlinePlus says to get medical care right away for a sudden high fever, a severe headache, a stiff neck, or nausea or vomiting, and its encyclopedia says to go to a hospital emergency department right away if you think you have symptoms of meningitis. Tests to diagnose it include blood tests, imaging tests, and a spinal tap to test cerebrospinal fluid. There are vaccines to prevent some of the bacterial infections that cause meningitis.

Meningitis in Spanish

Spanish term: Meningitis
Gender and article: feminine: la meningitis
Pronunciation: meh-neen-HEE-tees

Meningitis is written the same way on the English and Spanish MedlinePlus pages. The Real Academia Española dictionary marks meningitis as a feminine noun with the label Med. and defines it as inflamación de las meninges; MedlinePlus en español writes la meningitis. That page keeps the noun unchanged in the plural, as in algunos tipos de meningitis virales, and names the two forms it describes meningitis viral and meningitis bacteriana.

The MedlinePlus en español encyclopedia lists Meningitis - bacteriana, Meningitis - viral and Meningitis - micótica (por hongos) among its alternative names. Words that appear with the term are rigidez en el cuello (stiff neck), dolor de cabeza fuerte (severe headache), punción lumbar or punción espinal (spinal tap) and líquido cefalorraquídeo (cerebrospinal fluid). The Spanish encyclopedia carries the same urgent instruction as the English one: Vaya al departamento de emergencias de un hospital de inmediato si cree tener síntomas de meningitis.

Phrases for an appointment

What a patient or a clinician might say, in English and Spanish:

Who	English	Spanish
Patient	I have a severe headache, a fever and a stiff neck.	Tengo un dolor de cabeza fuerte, fiebre y rigidez en el cuello.
Clinician	When did the symptoms start? Does light bother your eyes?	¿Cuándo empezaron los síntomas? ¿Le molesta la luz en los ojos?
Patient	They started suddenly this morning, and yes, light bothers me.	Empezaron de repente esta mañana y, sí, la luz me molesta.
Clinician	Have you had nausea or vomiting?	¿Ha tenido náuseas o vómitos?
Clinician	We need to do a lumbar puncture to take a sample of spinal fluid.	Tenemos que hacerle una punción lumbar para extraer una muestra del líquido cefalorraquídeo.
Patient	Is it viral or bacterial meningitis?	¿Es meningitis viral o bacteriana?
Clinician	The test results will tell us the cause.	Los resultados de la prueba nos dirán la causa.
Patient	Is there a vaccine against meningitis?	¿Existe una vacuna contra la meningitis?

In 9 languages

Language	Term
English	Meningitis
Spanish (Español)	Meningitis
Chinese (中文)	腦膜炎
Korean (한국어)	뇌수막염
Vietnamese (Tiếng Việt)	Viêm màng não
Filipino (Tagalog)	Meningitis
Portuguese (Português)	Meningite
Thai (ภาษาไทย)	เยื่อหุ้มสมองอักเสบ
Japanese (日本語)	髄膜炎

Where you'll see it

chartEOBmedical record

Related ICD-10-CM category

ICD-10-CM code: G03 → Meningitis due to other and unspecified causes

Related terms

Your right to an interpreter in the United States

If English is not your primary language and you have difficulty communicating in English, you may need an interpreter or a translated document when you visit a doctor or dentist, go to the emergency room or pick up a prescription. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights states that two federal laws, Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Section 1557 of the Affordable Care Act, require programs that receive its funding to provide language access services free of charge.

You can ask when you make the appointment or at the front desk: "I need an interpreter, please." «Necesito un intérprete, por favor.»

More terms: Brain and nerves

All terms in this area: Brain and nerves — Cerebro y nervios

Sources

This page is a language reference. It is not medical advice.