Meningitis During Infancy May Lead to Teenage Behavioral Problems

Babies who have meningitis may be more likely to experience behavioral problems when they're teenagers, says a British study.

Imperial College of Medicine researchers surveyed parents and teachers of 739 English and Welsh 13-year-olds who had contracted bacterial meningitis before their first birthday, BBC News Online reports.

The survey found that nearly half those parents reported children with behavioral problems. Teachers reported that more than one-third of the children who had meningitis were difficult, compared to 23 percent of children who didn't have meningitis.

The study appears in the journal Archives of Disease in Childhood.

-- Robert Preidt and Scott Roberts

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