Cerebral blood flow and carbon dioxide reactivity in children with bacterial meningitis S t e p h e n Ashwal, MD, Warren Stringer, MD, L a w r e n c e Tomasi, MD, Sanford Schneider, MD, J o s e p h Thompson, MD, a n d Ron Perkin, MD From the Departments of Pediatrics and Radiation Sciences, Loma Linda University School of Medicine, Loma Linda, California We e x a m i n e d total and regional cerebral b l o o d flow (CBF) by stable x e n o n c o m p u t e d t o m o g r a p h y in 20 seriously ill children with acute bacterial meningitis to determine whether CBF was r e d u c e d and to e x a m i n e the c h a n g e s in CBF during hyperventilation. In 13 children, total CBF was normal (62 _+ 20 ml/min/100 gm) but marked local variability of flow was seen. In five other children, total CBF was significantly r e d u c e d (26 _+ 10 ml/min/100 gm; p