14 Symptoms of Encephalitis

Encephalitis is a rare condition that affects fewer than 200,000 people in America each year. It is a bacterial or viral disease that affects the brain due to infection. Treatment will cure the disease if it is treated early. If you wait too long to get treated it can cause other serious problems with the body.

When encephalitis is present in the body there are symptoms to look out for. A person may not get all of the symptoms. It just depends on the person. Once a person has any of the symptoms, they need to make an appointment to see their primary care physician for a physical examination to figure out what he or she has.

Encephalitis can cause death, if not treated. Any symptom that lasts longer than a few days needs to be treated immediately.

Here are eight symptoms of encephalitis that you need to look out for.

1. Fever is a symptom that you will experience when you have encephalitis. 

The fever may come on suddenly. You will not know what is causing the fever, especially if you aren’t sick. When a fever is present, you may take over-the-counter pain medication to relieve the fever. It will not help because the fever may be severe that the only way to get relief is by going to the emergency room or to your primary care doctor. Whichever one you decide to go to you’ll need to make sure that they give you a thorough examination.

A doctor can’t just take your temperature and give you a prescription. They need to figure out what is wrong because without the physical examination you’ll just come back. The second time you go to the doctor, the fever may so severe that you’ll need to go to the emergency room. Once encephalitis is diagnosed, medications will be given, along with supportive care, if needed.