Hepatitis E virus and neurologic disorders

Emerg Infect Dis. 2011 Feb;17(2):173-9. doi: 10.3201/eid1702.100856.

Abstract

Information about the spectrum of disease caused by hepatitis E virus (HEV) genotype 3 is emerging. During 2004-2009, at 2 hospitals in the United Kingdom and France, among 126 patients with locally acquired acute and chronic HEV genotype 3 infection, neurologic complications developed in 7 (5.5%): inflammatory polyradiculopathy (n = 3), Guillain-Barre syndrome (n = 1), bilateral brachial neuritis (n = 1), encephalitis (n = 1), and ataxia/proximal myopathy (n = 1). Three cases occurred in nonimmunocompromised patients with acute HEV infection, and 4 were in immunocompromised patients with chronic HEV infection. HEV RNA was detected in cerebrospinal fluid of all 4 patients with chronic HEV infection but not in that of 2 patients with acute HEV infection. Neurologic outcomes were complete resolution (n = 3), improvement with residual neurologic deficit (n = 3), and no improvement (n = 1). Neurologic disorders are an emerging extrahepatic manifestation of HEV infection.

Publication types

  • Case Reports
  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Acute Disease
  • Adult
  • Chronic Disease
  • Female
  • France
  • Guillain-Barre Syndrome / physiopathology
  • Guillain-Barre Syndrome / virology*
  • Hepatitis E / complications*
  • Hepatitis E / virology
  • Hepatitis E virus / pathogenicity*
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Middle Aged
  • Nervous System Diseases / physiopathology
  • Nervous System Diseases / virology*
  • United Kingdom