Meningitic Symptoms Rapidly Following Lumbar Puncture and Rapidly Disappearing

Infection of the spinal meninges following lumbar puncture has been reported in rare instances, but we have never previously observed, nor found recorded in the literature, that severe symptoms of meningitis, with many polymorphonuclear cells in the spinal fluid, may follow lumbar puncture within a few hours and disappear in little more than twenty-four hours after their first appearance. This, however, was our experience recently, and the case caused us great anxiety for a short time. It seemed to us that possibly the meningeal blood vessels were congested from the epileptic attacks, as such congestion is not infrequent in convulsions, and that, as a result of relief of pressure, even though slight, by lumbar puncture, escape of blood cells, possibly by diapedesis, occurred and caused meningeal irritation. We have asked for information from three well known serologists, Drs. Herbert Fox, F. B. Lynch and John A. Kolmer, and not one