A strange oculomotor palsy with eosinophilia

Abstract

A 75-year-old man was admitted to the Department of internal medicine because of a 2-month history of neurological deterioration. During the previous year, he complained of recurrent sinusitis, asthma, arthralgias, myalgias and asthenia. Later on, an oculomotor palsy, weakness and disturbance of the sensibility of the right upper limb appeared. Blood sample showed 6510 eosinophils per microlitre. The cerebral magnetic resonance demonstrated bilateral frontal and left parietal subcortical lesions from which the most voluminous presented large haemorrhagic areas. A cerebral biopsy showed small vessel's vasculitis, fibrinoid necrosis and extravascular eosinophilic encroachment. A diagnosis of oculomotor palsy secondary to eosinophilic granulomatosis with polyangeitis was then made, which was successfully treated with corticosteroids and cyclophosphamide.