Objective: Meningitis and encephalitis are infectious diseases with high risk of complications that must be diagnosed and treated immediately. In this study we aimed to investigate the bacteriological culture results of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) samples and the frequency of Herpes Simplex Virus (HSV-1/2) in suspected cases of viral infections of central nervous system (CNS).

Method: CSF samples of a total of 192 patients with suspected CNS infection were evaluated retrospectively. VITEK 2 (bioMérieux, France) automated system was used for the identification of species, and antibiotic susceptibility tests. Protein and glucose levels in CSF samples were also recorded. Presence of HSV-1/2 DNA was qualitatively evaluated with real-time PCR technique by using Artus® HSV ½ QS-RGQ (Qiagen, Germany) kits on Rotor-Gene system (Qiagen, Germany).

Results: Bacteria were isolated in 11 (6%) of 192 CSF samples. Isolated microorganisms were Streptococcus pneumoniae (45%), Staphylococcus epidermidis (18%), Klebsiella pneumoniae (9%), Citrobacter koseri (9%), Pseudomonas aeuroginosa (9%), and Listeria monocytogenes (9%). HSV-1 DNA was detected in five (4.5%) of the 110 samples sent to our laboratory with the thought of viral etiology. The CSF glucose levels were found to be lower and protein levels higher in 11 patients whom we obtained bacterial isolates from culture. Also in the CSF samples of the HSV-1 positive group higher glucose levels in 4, and protein levels in 3 patients were detected

Conclusion: Epidemiology of pathogens causing menengitis and encephalitis in our region will contribute to surveillance data. Also monitoring the antibiotic susceptibilities of the isolated bacteria regularly can contribute to improve efficient therapy strategies.