| Pneumococcal patients (n = 79) | Meningococcal patients (n = 76) | p Value* | |
| Presentation | |||
| Glasgow Coma Scale score (mean (SD)) | 11 (3) | 12 (3) | 0.03 |
| Coma (n (%)) | 10 (13) | 8 (11) | 0.62† |
| Median heart rate (bpm) (mean (SD)) | 100 (16.8) | 88 (18.9) | <0.001 |
| Diastolic blood pressure <60 mm Hg (n (%)) | 8 (10) | 16 (21) | 0.12 |
| Focal cerebral deficits‡ (n (%)) | 18 (23) | 11 (14) | 0.22† |
| Cranial nerve palsies (n (%)) | 16 (20) | 5 (7) | 0.02† |
| Laboratory results on admission | |||
| CSF leucocyte count (×103 cells/mm3) (mean (SD)) | 18 (25) | 19 (28) | 0.42 |
| CSF protein level (g/l) (mean (SD)) | 4.3 (2.7) | 4.9 (3.4) | 0.43 |
| CSF glucose level (mg/dl) (mean (SD)) | 1.2 (1.4) | 1.4 (1.9) | 0.62 |
| Positive blood culture (n (%)) | 54 (68) | 56 (74) | 0.99† |
| Focal neurological abnormalities at discharge | |||
| Focal cerebral deficits (n (%)) | 4 (5) | 2 (3) | 0.68† |
| Cranial nerve palsies (n (%)) | 22 (28) | 9 (12) | 0.02† |
| Glasgow Outcome Scale score 3 or 4/5 at discharge | 23/56 | 3/73 | <0.001† |
| Time between illness and cognitive testing (months) (mean (SD)) | 54.7 (44.0) | 68.8 (49.4) | 0.10 |
*Two tailed p value of U test; †χ2 test.
‡Aphasia, monoparesis or hemiparesis.