The serological diagnosis of St Louis encephalitis in a patient with the syndrome of opsoclonia, body tremulousness, and benign encephalitis

Abstract

This report describes a 28‐year‐old man with serologically confirmed St Louis encephalitis who meets the criteria for the syndrome of opsoclonia, body tremulousness, and benign encephalitis.

Pathobiology of the Flaviviruses

“…The selective vulnerability of these regions correlates with clinical manifestations (Gardner and Reyes, 1980). In some human cases, the constellation of clinical neurological findings allows relatively precise localization to brainstem, midbrain, or cerebellum (Estrin, 1976 j Kaplan and Koveleski, 1978). The predominant involvement of thalamus, brainstem, and cerebellum explains the frequent occurrence of tremors, motor incoordination, and dystonia in these infections.…”

Opsoclonus and polymyoclonia complicating oat-cell carcinoma of the bronchus

“…Sometimes the cerebro-spinal fluid (CSF) has contained excessive lymphocytes. Serological evidence of infection has only been given in isolated cases; mumps virus (Baringer et al, 1968), St Louis encephalitis virus (Estrim, 1977) and psittacosis (Blue, Janeway and Stanley, 1971). Solomon and Chutorian (1968) were the first to describe opsoclonus in association with an occult neuroblastoma of childhood and since then there have been many similar reports (Bolthauser et al, 1979) confirming this relationship.…”

Neuroimmunology of dancing eye syndrome in children

“…Crude 2-year survival rates are 90% for children with OMS and NB and 30 to 34% for children with NB not complicated by OMS. [11][12][13][14][15][16][17] As in the case of suspected PNS in adults, 18 there is an idiopathic syndrome in which other factors, such as infection, appear to be important. But in reported cases it is impossible to be certain if there were coexisting occult neoplasms whose detection defied best diagnostic efforts in these cases, and that infection was either coincidental or had an adjuvant effect in the induction of an autoimmune response.…”