biology

Meningitis-retention syndrome

Meningitis-retention syndrome is a biology topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Meningitis-retention syndrome rather than just read about it. In short: Meningitis-retention syndrome (MRS), a combination of acute aseptic meningitis and urinary retention (detrusor underactivity), is an inflammatory neurological condition that was first described in 2005. Its prevalence as yet remains unknown.

Key takeaways

Meningitis-retention syndrome belongs to biology; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Meningitis-retention syndrome to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Meningitis-retention syndrome from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Meningitis-retention syndrome (MRS), a combination of acute aseptic meningitis and urinary retention (detrusor underactivity), is an inflammatory neurological condition that was first described in 2005. Its prevalence as yet remains unknown.

Presentation MRS can occur in any age. Clinically, MRS is defined as a combination of a) aseptic meningitis (increased reflexes without leg weakness might be seen; abnormal cerebrospinal fluid alone can also accompany) and b) acute urinary retention. Aseptic meningitis is a common condition, which is caused by many viruses but also by autoimmune etiologies. MRS occurs in 8% of aseptic meningitis cases. Average latencies from the onset of meningeal irritation to urinary symptoms were 0–8 days. However, in some cases, urinary retention precedes fever and headache. The duration of urinary retention in MRS was mostly 7–14 days, lasting up to 10 weeks. Mild acute disseminated encephalomyelitis (ADEM) is considered an underlying mechanism of MRS, because some patients show elevated myelin basic protein in the CSF and a reversible splenial lesion on brain magnetic resonance imaging.

Cause As it is observed in ADEM, antecedent/comorbid infections or conditions with MRS include Epstein–Barr virus, herpes simplex virus, varicella zoster virus, West Nile virus, and listeria. In addition to these, elevated CSF adenosine deaminase (ADA) levels or decreased CSF/serum glucose ratio may be predictive factors for MRS development.

Diagnosis Urodynamic testing including cystometry show that all patients examined had underactive bladder/detrusor underactivity when on retention. Repeated urodynamics showed that underactive detrusor changed to overactive after a 4-month period, suggesting an upper motor neuron bladder dysfunction (possible spinal shock). MRS should be differentiated from genital herpes (herpes simplex virus, varicella-zoster virus) and so-called Elsberg syndrome. Clinical/pathological features of Elsberg syndrome were: rare CSF abnormalities; no clinical meningitis; a subacute/chronic course; presentation with typical cauda equina motor-sensory-autonomic syndrome; Wallerian degeneration of the spinal afferent tracts; and mild upper motor neuron signs. All these are different from those of MRS.

Treatment It is believed that MRS is a self-limited disease. The duration of urinary retention in MRS was mostly 7–14 days, lasting up to 10 weeks. While urinary retention in MRS ameliorates in most cases, care must be taken to prevent overdistension bladder injury, by performing clean-intermittent self-catheterization. It is not known whether steroid pulse therapy might shorten the period of urinary retention, because of MRS's self-remitting feature.

History This disease was described first by Sakakibara R et al. in 2005.

See also Neurogenic bladder dysfunction Aseptic meningitis Autonomic nervous system Autonomic failure, dysautonomia Multiple sclerosis Spinal cord Nerve root Fowler's syndrome International Continence Society

References

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Meningitis-retention syndrome

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Meningitis-retention syndrome claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In biology, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Meningitis-retention syndrome before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Meningitis-retention syndrome ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Meningitis-retention syndrome

In research: Meningitis-retention syndrome appears in biology research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Meningitis-retention syndrome in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Meningitis-retention syndrome is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics Neurology, Urological conditions, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Meningitis-retention syndrome outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Meningitis-retention syndrome in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Meningitis-retention syndrome means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Meningitis-retention syndrome out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Meningitis-retention syndrome in simple terms?

Why does Meningitis-retention syndrome matter?

Because it connects several biology ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Meningitis-retention syndrome?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Meningitis-retention syndrome.