Acute disseminated encephalomyelitis associated with active mycoplasma pneumonia infection

Abstract EN

Acute Demyelinating Encephalomyelitis is rarely reported as Mycoplasma post-infectious phenomena, it usually occurs after subsidence of the acute infection, and to our knowledge no cases were reported to occur with active infection.

Here we report a young male patient with Acute Demyelinating Encephalomyelitis associated with active Mycoplasma pneumonia infection.

He presented with right lobar community acquired pneumonia.

It was associated with diplopia, unsteady gait, lower limbs weakness and urine retention.

The patient was treated with Azithromycin for fourteen days and a five days course of steroids; he had swift initial recovery of his pneumonia.

Five months later he showed full clinical and radiological recovery of his central nervous system illness, a year later he continued to show full clinical recovery without recurrence.

This was a rare case of Acute Demyelinating Encephalomyelitis associated with active mycoplasma pneumonia.

It is still unclear whether immunoglobulins and/or steroids therapy should be part of treatment regimen in pure Acute Demyelinating Encephalomyelitis.