%0 Journal Article
%T Unusual MRI findings in an immunocompetent patient with EBV encephalitis: a case report
%A Paola Di Carlo
%A Marcello Trizzino
%A Lucina Titone
%A Giuseppina Capra
%A Piero Colletti
%A Giovanni Mazzola
%A Daniela Pistoia
%A Caterina Sarno
%J BMC Medical Imaging
%D 2011
%I BioMed Central
%R 10.1186/1471-2342-11-6
%X Herein the authors report unusual timely Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) brain scan findings in an immunocompetent patient with EBV encephalitis.Diffusion weighted MRI sequence performed during the acute phase of the disease was normal, whereas the Fast Relaxation Fast Spin Echo T2 image showed diffuse signal intensity changes in white matter. The enhancement pattern suggested an inflammatory response restricted to the brain microcirculation. Acyclovir and corticosteroid therapy was administered. After three weeks, all signal intensities returned to normal and the patient showed clinical recovery.This report demonstrates that EBV in an immunocompetent adult can present with diffuse, reversible brain white matter involvement in the acute phase of mononucleosis. Moreover, our case suggests that a negative DWI sequence is associated with a favorable improvement in severe EBV CNS infection. More extensive studies are needed to assess what other instrumental data can help to distinguish viral lesions from other causes in the acute phase of disease.Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) is the causative agent of infectious mononucleosis (IM) and can lead to various central nervous system (CNS) complications, such as demyelinating disease, acute encephalitis, meningitis and acute cerebellar ataxia [1-3]. The illness usually runs a benign course, though fatal cases have been reported [4].Neurological involvement has been reported in children during the acute phase of the disease and sequelae occur in a substantial number of patients [4-6]. Neurological manifestations associated with reactivation of EBV infection in immunocompetent adults have recently been reported [7,8]. Furthermore, evidence suggests that EBV plays a role in multiple sclerosis (MS) disease activity and in Acute disseminate encephalomyelitis (ADEM), an immune-mediated inflammatory disorder of the CNS, characterized by a multifocal demyelination that involves the white matter of the brain and spinal cord [9,10].Magnetic
%K Epstein-Barr virus
%K encephalitis
%K MRI
%K Diffusion-weighted imaging
%U http://www.biomedcentral.com/1471-2342/11/6