- Strep pneumoniae, neisseria meningiditis, listeria, staph
- Strep pneumoniae, n meningiditis: living in dormitories/college and not vaccinated
- Listeria: the elderly and the very young
- Staph: s/p instrumentation or surgery to the CNS, indwelling devices
- Acute
- Fever
- Head ache
- Neck pain
- Typical CSF Findings: Opening pressure > 180mm, WBC 100-10,000 (poly predominance), glucose < 40% serum, Protein > 45, gram stain + (if obtained pre-abx)