How is the virus spread?

Enteroviruses, the most common cause of viral meningitis, are most often spread through direct contact with respiratory secretions (e.g., saliva, sputum, or nasal mucus) of an infected person. This usually happens by shaking hands with an infected person or touching something they have handled, and then rubbing your own nose or mouth.

The virus can also be found in the stool of persons who are infected. The virus is spread through this route mainly among small children who are not yet toilet trained. It can also be spread this way to adults changing the diapers of an infected infant. The incubation period for enteroviruses is usually between 3 and 7 days from the time you are infected until you develop symptoms. You can usually spread the virus to someone else beginning about 3 days after you are infected until about 10 days after you develop symptoms.


Although the viruses and bacteria that cause meningitis are contagious, not everyone who comes in contact with someone with meningitis will develop the disease. In fact, meningitis typically occurs in isolated cases. Occasionally outbreaks of meningitis caused by Neisseria meningitidis, also known as meningococcal meningitis, occur in group living situations, such as day-care centers, college dormitories, or military barracks.

A child whose immune system is weakened—due to a disease or genetic disorder, for instance—is at increased risk for developing meningitis. In general, however, scientists do not know why microorganisms that are usually harmless are able to cross into the CSF and cause meningitis in some people but not others.