While on tour, a 32 year old male musician has presented to the emergency department of a hospital after a concert complaining of severe and sudden abdominal pain. He admits to a history of copious alcohol use in recent years, and his vital signs include temperature 101.8°F, blood pressure 89/48 mm HG and heart rate 116 beats per minute. Blood work indicates that his serum levels of C-reactive protein, amylase and lipase are all elevated. Which of the following diagnoses would the care team suspect first?

A. Decision-making, problem-solving, and planning: The frontal lobe is primarily responsible for higher-order executive functions such as reasoning, decision-making, problem-solving, judgment, and planning. It also plays a role in personality and voluntary motor control, especially through the prefrontal cortex and motor areas.

B. Vision and color recognition: These functions are associated with the occipital lobe, which is located at the back of the brain and specializes in processing visual input, including aspects like color, shape, and motion.

C. Language comprehension and memory: Language comprehension is primarily controlled by Wernicke’s area, which is located in the temporal lobe. Memory is also associated with the temporal lobe and the limbic system structures like the hippocampus.

D. Movement coordination and balance: These are functions of the cerebellum, which regulates fine motor control, coordination, balance, and posture—not the frontal lobe.

A. Traveling abroad recently: While international travel can expose individuals to infectious diseases, it is not the most concerning factor in this case compared to his communal living situation.

B. Living in a large, crowded communal setting: Crowded living conditions significantly increase the risk of meningitis transmission, especially for bacterial types like Neisseria meningitidis which spread via respiratory droplets.

C. An infection of the brain tissue, typically due to a virus or bacteria: This describes encephalitis, not meningitis. Meningitis affects the protective membranes, not the brain tissue itself.

D. An inflammation of the protective membranes around the brain and spinal cord (meninges): This is the correct definition of meningitis and is the pathological hallmark of the disease.

E. Having an allergy to medications: Having an allergy to medications is important for safe patient care and medication administration, but it is not a risk factor for acquiring meningitis.

F. An inflammation of the lungs caused by a viral or bacterial infection: This describes pneumonia, not meningitis. It is unrelated to the direct cause of meningitis.