The length of time a patient with tuberculous meningitis can live cannot be generalized, but depends on the patient’s own underlying health status and whether he or she has been treated promptly and effectively. Tuberculous meningitis is a non-suppurative inflammatory disease of the meninges and spinal cord membranes caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis. Most of the cases are insidious and have a chronic course, while a few patients have an acute or subacute onset. The symptoms of tuberculosis are usually hypothermia, night sweats, loss of appetite and other symptoms of tuberculosis toxicity; in the early stage, headache, fever, vomiting and signs of meningeal irritation may be manifested; in the late stage, obstructive hydrocephalus may result from tuberculosis exudate; in addition, some patients have signs of neurological damage. Generally speaking, if the patient is young, has few symptoms and receives timely and standardized anti-tuberculosis treatment, survival is usually not affected. However, if the disease is severe, with extensive lesions or even brain herniation, it can be life-threatening at any time. If the patient is older, has poorer underlying health status, and is sicker, such as being in a coma at the onset, the prognosis is poor and death may occur within a short time in severe cases. Therefore, when TB meningitis occurs, patients must be treated in a timely manner and as soon as possible to prevent delaying the best time for treatment, making it more difficult to treat and even life-threatening.