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Acute hemorrhagic leukoencephalitis
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Overview
Acute hemorrhagic leukoencephalitis (AHL) is a very rare form of acute disseminated encephalomyelitis that usually results in death. It is characterized by a brief but intense attack of inflammation in the brain and spinal cord that damages the myelin -- the protective covering of the nerve fibers. It may also cause bleeding in the brain, leading to damage of the white matter. Symptoms usually come on quickly, beginning with symptoms such as fever, neck stiffness, fatigue, headache, nausea vomiting, seizures, and coma. AHL has a very poor prognosis, with rapid deterioration and death usually occurring within days to one week after onset of symptoms because of severe inflammation in the brain. Although the exact cause is unclear, AHL usually follows a viral infection, or less often, vaccination for measles, mumps, or rubella. Some researchers think that an infection or vaccination can initiate an autoimmune process in the body thus leading to AHL.[1][2]
References
- Lann MA, Lovell MA, Kleinschmidt-DeMasters BK. Acute hemorrhagic leukoencephalitis: a critical entity for forensic pathologists to recognize. Am J Forensic Med Pathol. 2010. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/20010289. Accessed August 19, 2011.
- Ryan LJ, Bowman R, Zantek ND, Sherr G, Maxwell R, Clark HB, Mair DC. Transfusion. 2007. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17524086. Accessed August 19, 2011.
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General Information
- PubMed is a searchable database of medical literature and lists journal articles that discuss Acute hemorrhagic leukoencephalitis. Click on the link to view a sample search on this topic.
- The The Online Mendelian Inheritance in Man (OMIM) database contains genetics resources that discuss Acute hemorrhagic leukoencephalitis. Click on the link to go to OMIM and review these resources.