Bacterial and Fungal Intracranial Infections

Bacterial infections of the central nervous system (CNS) in the newborn are common and are of major clinical importance. By far the most frequent of these infections is neonatal bacterial meningitis. Other bacterial processes include primary intracranial infections (e.g., epidural and subdural empyema and brain abscess) and disorders in which involvement of the CNS is secondary to extraneural infection (e.g., neonatal tetanus). Systemic candidiasis, a disseminated fungal infection, is also part of this chapter. The emphasis will be on the neuropathological, clinical, and neuroimaging features.