rifampin and Encephalomyelitis

Reports on simultaneous central and peripheral nervous system involvement in a patient with brucellosis are very rare. We report of one young female patient with a long history of consumption of non-pasteurized dairy products in which clinical and laboratory findings confirmed the existence of an active brucellosis with nervous system impairment. Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) analyses were negative. Electrophysiology and positive findings on sural nerve biopsy complemented the diagnosis of polyneuroradiculomyeloencephalitis. Treatment with a combination of doxycycline and rifampin for 2 months was successfully applied. No relapse or sequelae occurred in the patient after 12 months of follow up.

Topics: Adult; Antibodies, Bacterial; Brucella; Brucellosis; Dairy Products; Doxycycline; Drug Therapy, Combination; Encephalomyelitis; Female; Food Contamination; Humans; Mexico; Polyradiculoneuropathy; Rifampin

We describe a 38-year-old farmer from the southwestern archipelago of Finland where both tick-borne encephalitis (TBE) virus and Borrelia burgdorferi are endemic. He presented with fever and headache, developed severe meningoencephalitis in 3 days, and, after 1 month, died without regaining consciousness. High titers of IgG and IgM antibodies to TBE virus were present in both serum and CSF. Serology for Borrelia was negative. Autopsy revealed necrotizing encephalitis and myelitis with involvement of the dorsal root ganglion. With use of polymerase chain reaction tests, segments of two separate genes of B. burgdorferi were amplified from the patient's CSF. This case demonstrates that the possibility of dual infection should be considered for patients residing in geographic areas where Ixodes ticks may carry both the TBE virus and B. burgdorferi. We believe that the most severe damage in this case was caused by TBE virus rather than by B. burgdorferi. Nevertheless, the coinfection might have contributed to the fatal outcome that has not been previously observed in Finnish patients with TBE.

Topics: Adult; Drug Therapy, Combination; Encephalitis, Tick-Borne; Encephalomyelitis; Humans; Imipenem; Injections, Intravenous; Lyme Disease; Male; Polymerase Chain Reaction; Rifampin; Vancomycin

Topics: Chronic Disease; Coma; Dactinomycin; Daunorubicin; Dexamethasone; Encephalomyelitis; Fever; Headache; Humans; Idoxuridine; Leukopenia; Meningitis, Viral; Mental Disorders; Pain; Paralysis; Respiratory Insufficiency; Rifampin; Vomiting