Unihemispheric central nervous system vasculitis

Patients with primary central nervous system vasculitis (PCNSV) usually manifest with multiple enhancing bilateral hemispheric lesions. We presented an extremely rare clinical course and follow-up of a patient with PCNSV affecting only a single (right) hemisphere. A 33-year-old previously healthy ma...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Sikawat Thanaviratananich, Bashar Katirji
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2017-06-01
Series:eNeurologicalSci
Subjects:
Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2405650217300151
Description
Summary:Patients with primary central nervous system vasculitis (PCNSV) usually manifest with multiple enhancing bilateral hemispheric lesions. We presented an extremely rare clinical course and follow-up of a patient with PCNSV affecting only a single (right) hemisphere. A 33-year-old previously healthy man presented with a left hand clonic seizure followed by a secondary generalized tonic-clonic seizure and dysarthria. MRI brain revealed multiple hyperintense lesions confined to only the right hemisphere with contrast enhancement, involving both white and grey matters. He was treated with a methylprednisolone for 5 days followed by prednisone for suspected acute disseminated encephalomyelitis without improvements. He was presented again with left-sided weakness, transient dysarthria and black objects in left visual field. MRI brain was unchanged. MR angiogram and conventional cerebral angiogram were normal. Autoimmune work-ups were all negative. A brain biopsy showed evidence of PCNSV. He was then successfully treated with intravenous cyclophosphamide followed by oral azathioprine. On a follow-up 3 years later, he remains asymptomatic on azathioprine and a repeat MRI showed all areas of enhancement were gone.
ISSN:2405-6502