FDG-PET hyperactivity pattern in anti-NMDAr encephalitis

Jan Novy; Gilles Allenbach; Christian G Bien; Eric Guedj; John O Prior; Andrea O Rossetti

doi:10.1016/j.jneuroim.2016.05.016

FDG-PET hyperactivity pattern in anti-NMDAr encephalitis

J Neuroimmunol. 2016 Aug 15:297:156-8. doi: 10.1016/j.jneuroim.2016.05.016. Epub 2016 Jun 2.

Authors

Jan Novy¹, Gilles Allenbach², Christian G Bien³, Eric Guedj⁴, John O Prior², Andrea O Rossetti⁵

Affiliations

¹ Neurology service, Department of clinical neurosciences, CHUV, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland. Electronic address: jan.novy@chuv.ch.
² Nuclear Medicine, CHUV, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland.
³ Department of Epileptology, University of Bonn, Bonn, Germany; Epilepsy Centre Bethel, Mara Hospital, Bielefeld, Germany.
⁴ Service Central de Biophysique et Médecine Nucléaire, CHU Timone & Centre Européen de Recherche en Imagerie Médicale, CERIMED & Centre d'Investigation Clinique, CIC, INSERM, Université de la Méditerranée, Marseille F-13000, France.
⁵ Neurology service, Department of clinical neurosciences, CHUV, University of Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland.

PMID: 27397089
DOI: 10.1016/j.jneuroim.2016.05.016

Abstract

FDG-PET can show anteroposterior glucose metabolism gradient in anti-NMDAr encephalitis, but there are also suggestions that basal ganglia are involved. We examined FDG-PET scans in 5 consecutive episodes of serologically proven anti-NMDAr encephalitis, compared with healthy controls. We confirmed the anteroposterior metabolic gradient and found a significant FDG uptake increase in the caudate nuclei in episodes of varying intensity and delay from the onset of the symptoms. FDG-PET can be useful in the work-up of suspected anti-NMDAr encephalitis disclosing a characteristic cortical and sub-cortical metabolism pattern.

Keywords: Inflammation; NMDA; Psychiatry.

MeSH terms

Adult
Anti-N-Methyl-D-Aspartate Receptor Encephalitis / diagnostic imaging*
Anti-N-Methyl-D-Aspartate Receptor Encephalitis / metabolism*
Female
Fluorodeoxyglucose F18 / metabolism*
Humans
Positron-Emission Tomography*
Retrospective Studies
Young Adult

Substances

Fluorodeoxyglucose F18