Management of autoimmune status epilepticus

Batool F. Kirmani, Donald Barr, Diana Mungall Robinson, Zachary Pranske, Ekokobe Fonkem, Jared Benge, Jason H. Huang, Geoffrey Ling

Research output: Contribution to journalShort surveypeer-review

4 Scopus citations

Abstract

Status epilepticus is a neurological emergency with increased morbidity and mortality. Urgent diagnosis and treatment are crucial to prevent irreversible brain damage. In this mini review, we will discuss the recent advances in the diagnosis and treatment of autoimmune status epilepticus (ASE), a rare form of the disorder encountered in the intensive care unit. ASE can be refractory to anticonvulsant therapy and the symptoms include subacute onset of short-term memory loss with rapidly progressive encephalopathy, psychiatric symptoms with unexplained new-onset seizures, imaging findings, CSF pleocytosis, and availability of antibody testing makes an earlier diagnosis of ASE possible. Neuroimmunomodulatory therapies are the mainstay in the treatment of ASE. The goal is to maximize the effectiveness of anticonvulsant agents and find an optimal combination of therapies while undergoing immunomodulatory therapy to reduce morbidity and mortality.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Article number259
JournalFrontiers in Neurology
Volume9
Issue numberMAY
DOIs
StatePublished - May 9 2018

Keywords

  • Autoimmune antibodies
  • Autoimmune encephalitis
  • Autoimmune epilepsy
  • Neuroimmunomodulatory therapies
  • Status epilepticus

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Neurology
  • Clinical Neurology

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