BACKGROUND Children are more susceptible to infection. Meningitis is an inflammatory reaction of the meninges which is characterized by an increased leukocytes in the cerebrospinal fluid. The incidence of childhood meningitis is still high and mostly caused by bacteria with high case mortality and neurological sequelae. In tuberculosis (TB) endemic countries, the most common cause of meningitis is tuberculosis. The central nervous system plays a role in sodium and water regulation so in meningitis there are disruption of sodium homeostasis with the most is hyponatremia which associated with systemic complications, disease severity and death. METHODS The study was descriptive, retrospective from medical records of inpatients diagnosed with meningitis (ICD-10), children aged < 18 years and serum sodium results for the period 2019. Patients with a history of renal impairment and forced discharge were excluded. RESULTS TB meningitis is the most common cause of meningitis in children. 68.8% of meningitis patients have hyponatremia with the most is mild hyponatremia (36%). In TB meningitis, the severity of the disease is not directly related to the degree of sodium disorder, while in non-TB meningitis it is related to the severity of the disease. DISCUSSION Hyponatremia is associated with severity in non-TB meningitis. In normonatremia, sodium evaluation is still performed because hyponatremia can occur during treatment. CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS Meningitis is associated with hyponatremia and is associated with disease severity in non-TB meningitis. Sodium evaluation is necessary in tuberculous meningitis because hyponatremia can occur during the treatment.

sodium

meningitis

hyponatremia