Medical Coding Exam Prep

Answer: B - The difference between meningitis and encephalitis is that meningitis is the inflammation of the lining of the brain and encephalitis is the inflammation of the brain itself. Myelitis is the inflammation of the spinal cord, and encephalomyelitis is a combination of the inflammation of the brain and spinal cord. Generally speaking, when coding for any of the above conditions, the coder should report the organism responsible for the inflammation first and the inflammation second.