Case Report: Stroke or encephalitis?

Viral encephalitis is associated with significant morbidity and mortality, particularly when appropriate management is omitted as a result of delayed diagnosis. A case of herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) encephalitis is presented, demonstrating that the presentation of confusion, speech difficult...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Emergency medicine Australasia 2005-08, Vol.17 (4), p.401-404
Main Authors: Townend, Bradley S, Hanson, Julian A, Sturm, Jonathan W, Whyte, Scott
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Herpes simplex virus 1
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Summary:Viral encephalitis is associated with significant morbidity and mortality, particularly when appropriate management is omitted as a result of delayed diagnosis. A case of herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1) encephalitis is presented, demonstrating that the presentation of confusion, speech difficulties and fever with non-specific early brain CT appearances can easily be misdiagnosed as pneumonia with stroke. This case highlights the need for increased awareness of HSV-1 encephalitis among emergency physicians and radiologists, given that the early spectrum of clinical and CT findings can mimic the more common diagnoses of sepsis and stroke.
ISSN:1742-6731
1742-6723
DOI:10.1111/j.1742-6723.2005.00765.x