Meningitis due to parainfluenza virus type 3: report of two cases and review

Abstract

We report the cases of two infants with meningitis due to parainfluenza virus type 3. This is the first time that documented clinical and laboratory details have been reported for a 1-month-old infant with meningitis due to parainfluenza virus type 3 (our second case). We reviewed the literature and determined that CNS involvement by parainfluenza virus type 3 appears rare. Clinicians should be aware that parainfluenza virus type 3, one of the most common causes of viral respiratory infection in infancy, can also produce infection of the CNS and that hemadsorption testing of CSF specimens submitted for viral culture is necessary for detecting these paramyxoviruses.