20/03/2026
Not everyone who gets meningitis develops a rash, and sometimes this can be one of the last symptoms to appear so please don’t wait for a rash before seeking help if you are worried about your child.
Meningitis can kill in hours so it’s critical to know the symptoms so you can act fast.
If your child is unwell with ANY of these symptoms, go to a hospital or call for an ambulance immediately:
❗️Over 38°C in babies under three months
❗️Has a temperature and feels abnormally cold to touch/very cold hands and feet
❗️Very fast breathing, finding it much harder to breathe than normal, or noticeable pauses in breathing
❗️Grunting and/or noises with every breath
❗️Very lethargic / difficult to wake / not responding
Fitting / convulsion / seizures
❗️Weak, high pitched or continuous crying in a younger child
❗️Confusion or unusually irritable
❗️Soft spot on a baby’s head is bulging
❗️Stiff neck, especially when trying to look up and down
❗️Unusually sleepy, stiff or floppy baby
❗️Pale, blotchy or mottled skin - this may be harder to see on brown or black skin
❗️A rash that does not fade when pressed with a glass - the rash can be harder to see on brown or black skin. Check paler areas, such as the palms of the hands, soles of the feet, roof of the mouth, tummy, whites of the eyes or the inside of the eyelids.
❗️Not had a wee or wet nappy for 12 hours or more
❗️Very thirsty and not able to keep fluids down
❗️Bloody or black ‘coffee ground’ sick
Some of these high-risk symptoms are not typical signs of meningitis but are still signs of severe illness, so, if your child is unwell and has these symptoms, get urgent medical help.
It can be harder to see a meningitis rash in black or brown skin, so check lighter areas such as the palms of hands, soles of feet or inside eyelids or the mouth.
Remember not to wait for a rash if your little one has many of the other symptoms of meningitis, seek medical attention as quickly as possible.
