Meningitis induced by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2: A case report

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) emerged in December 2019 in China and caused a catastrophic pandemic in 2020. Significant manifestations of COVID-19 are related to the respiratory system; however, other organs, such as the brain and heart, can also be involved.

A 44-year-old-male was hospitalized in our referral emergency center due to being febrile and confused. He experienced five episodes of convulsion in the hospital. Within a day, the respiratory symptoms developed. The polymerase chain reaction of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) was positive for COVID-19. The analysis of CSF and findings of chest computed tomography scan revealed that the case was infected with meningitis induced by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and pneumonia.

It has been reported that neurological symptoms of COVID-19 can appear earlier than other symptoms. To the best of our knowledge, few articles have represented COVID-induced meningitis. This case study reported the first case of meningitis induced by SARS-CoV-2 in Iran.