Follow-up care after meningitis

Meningitis is a very serious illness, and you may need ongoing follow-up care once you’ve left hospital. The type of follow-up care you’ll need and how long it lasts will depend on how meningitis affected you. Everyone’s experience will be different.

On this page we’ll explain what follow-up care you might receive if you’ve had meningitis.

Being informed about your follow-up care

Before you leave the hospital, it’s important that you’re given information about what to expect during recovery from meningitis. If you have any after-effects of meningitis, you should be told any plans for future treatment you may need.

Some countries use clinical guidelines that help doctors and healthcare providers identify potential problems and decide what follow-up care to offer patients with meningitis. Not all countries have these guidelines, which can make it harder to get care and support after meningitis. Ask doctors and healthcare providers what to expect once you have left hospital and where to go if you have concerns about your recovery.

The information on this page is taken from the guidelines used in the UK, published by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE). We hope you’ll find it a useful guide if you’re in a different part of the world, but you may find that your local healthcare providers approach meningitis follow-up care in a different way.

When will you have a follow-up appointment?

Healthcare providers in some countries will arrange a follow-up appointment a few weeks after you’ve left hospital. In this appointment, a doctor will review your recovery from meningitis and identify any after-effects that might need further management and ongoing care.

In the UK, it’s recommended that all patients recovering from meningitis should have a follow-up appointment within four to six weeks of leaving hospital. Babies under 12 months who have had meningitis should have an additional review by a paediatrician one year after discharge from hospital. This is because some after-effects will not be apparent in very young babies.

People with pneumococcal meningitis will get worse fast. Check regularly on someone who is unwell. Always trust your instincts and get medical help straight away if you or someone you know is seriously ill. 

Read more information about the symptoms of meningitis.

What happens at a follow-up appointment in the UK?

During your first follow-up appointment, the doctor will assess:

• The results of any hearing assessments (if available).
• Neurological problems, which can include epilepsy as well as:
   

  —Cognitive problems (such as problems with memory, concentration).

  —Psychological problems (such as anxiety, sleep problems and depression).

  —Developmental problems (which can become apparent if children miss expected milestones, such as learning to walk and talk).

If you had meningococcal sepsis, the doctor will also assess:

• Any damage to bones and joints.
• Potential skin complications.

The follow-up appointment is an opportunity to discuss the recovery process and to look for signs of any complications that may need further care.

How are complications after meningitis treated and monitored?

If the doctor finds any complications following your illness, then follow-up care may involve physiotherapy, occupational therapy, psychotherapy and/or speech and language therapy. Different teams of doctors and specialists may be involved in your follow-up care.

Children with developmental problems may be referred to community child development services.

If you had meningococcal sepsis and were left with damage to skin and bones or lost limbs, you may require specialist rehabilitation and orthopaedic follow up.

Hearing loss is a possible after-effect following meningitis. It’s especially common after pneumococcal meningitis.

In the UK, it’s recommended that you should have a hearing test within four weeks of being well enough to take part in the test and answer the audiologist’s questions. If the hearing test results show severe or profound hearing loss in both ears, you will be offered an urgent assessment for cochlear implantation (a small electronic device that helps people to hear sounds). Cochlear implantation is more likely to be successful the sooner it’s carried out after the acute meningitis.

Babies, children and young people

Young babies recovering from meningitis are more likely to suffer from after-effects that affect the brain and development,¹ so the UK’s NICE guidelines recommend additional monitoring and follow-up care.

Community child development services should follow up and assess the risk of long-term neurodevelopmental complications for at least two years after discharge.

Author: Meningitis Research Foundation.
Reviewed by: Natalie King, Meningitis Research Foundation Ambassador; Dr Jeannière Manegabe, CoMO member.
Published: 24 December 2024.