MR imaging of herpes simplex type 1 encephalitis in infants and young children: a separate pattern of findings

OBJECTIVE: We sought to identify the initial MR findings of herpes simplex encephalitis in infants and young children. CONCLUSION: MR imaging findings of herpes encephalitis in infants and young children appear to differ from those seen in neonates, older children, and adults. Appreciation of this MR imaging pattern coupled with a strong clinical suspicion of herpes helps to ensure the correct diagnosis is made.     

36例病毒性脑炎的临床与MR分析

目的 :提高对病毒性脑炎的MRI及临床的认识。方法 :回顾性分析 3 6例经临床治疗后好转的病毒性脑炎的临床及MRI表现。常规行矢状位T1WI、轴位T1WI、T2 WI、FLAIR序列检查 ,其中 3 0例行增强扫描。结果 :3 0例MR初诊为病毒性脑炎 ,MR表现为颅内多发、片状或团片状异常信号 ,累及额、顶、颞、枕叶、基底节 丘脑区、中脑、小脑半球。T1WI呈稍低或等信号 ,T2 WI呈稍高信号 ,FLAIR序列呈明显高信号。增强扫描有多种表现 ,包括无明显强化、小点状、线样、团片状及脑回状强化 ,脑膜亦可强化 ,其中单疱病毒性脑炎 12例。误诊为脑梗死 2例 ,胶质瘤 1例 ,胶质瘤病 1例 ,脱髓鞘性病变 2例。结论 :MR对病毒性脑炎显示清楚 ,部分病毒性脑炎MR表现复杂 ,应结合临床资料考虑。     

Sequential MR imaging and SPECT studies in herpes simplex encephalitis with crossed cerebellar hyperperfusion

We report a case of herpes simplex encephalitis in which sequential MR imaging and SPECT studies showed interesting findings. SPECT in the acute stage showed wide increased uptake in the left cerebral hemisphere, as well as increased uptake in the contralateral right cerebellar hemisphere. Tl-weighted images in the subacute stage showed hyperintense signals along the cerebral cortices, but T2*-weighted gradient-echo images did not show any signal decrease caused by the magnetic susceptibility effect of hemoglobin degradation. Sequential SPECT studies in addition to MR imaging facilitate precise understanding of the pathophysiology of herpes simplex encephalitis.     

Herpes encephalitis: MR monitoring of response to acyclovir therapy

Viral encephalitis secondary to herpes simplex virus type I is thought to be the single most important cause of fatal, sporadic encephalitis in the United States. Magnetic resonance not only improves early diagnosis of herpes encephalitis but also is effective in documenting response to antiviral therapy.     

单纯疱疹病毒性脑炎的CT及MRI表现

目的：探讨单纯疱疹病毒性脑炎的影像学表现。方法：回顾性分析9例经PCR（polymerasechainreaction）证实的单纯疱疹病毒性脑炎患者的影像及临床资料,9例患者均行颅脑MRI及增强检查,3例行头部CT扫描。结果：2例病灶位于单侧颞叶、岛叶和扣带回;2例位于双侧颞叶,岛叶、基底节、额叶内侧回及海马钩回;5例位于双侧额叶、颞叶、岛叶,一侧为重,病灶多累及皮层及皮层下白质;其中2例出现不同程度的占位效应。CT扫描病灶呈低密度;MRl扫描病灶呈长T,长T2信号,TIRM序列上病灶呈高信号,DWI显示病灶区扩散受限,增强扫描5例出现脑膜样强化,4例无强化。结论：单纯疱疹病毒性脑炎影像学表现具有一定特征性,常侵犯颞叶、额叶、基底节及岛叶,尤其一侧颞叶、岛叶和眶额区为重．MRI对病灶的显示优于CT．     

Imaging in pediatric Herpes simplex virus type I encephalitis

PURPOSE: The aim of this study was to describe radiological features of herpes simplex virus 1 encephalitis, rarely reported in children. PATIENTS AND METHODS: We analyzed imaging findings in 10 children with biologically proven herpes simples virus 1 encephalitis. RESULTS: Eight CT scans were performed before the second day of the clinical course, 6 CT and 6 MRI were performed after day 4. The initial CT scan was normal in half of the cases. Low densities and hemorrhagic lesions were seen in almost half of the cases. There was no abnormal contrast enhancement in this series. DISCUSSION: After 4 days of infection, hemorrhagic lesions were seen in all cases. Unilateral thalamic involvement was observed in half of the children, in correlation with clinical recurrence of encephalitis. The diagnostic, histological and therapeutic significance of these thalamic involvements remains to be elucidated.     

SPECT and MR imaging in herpes simplex encephalitis

Two cases of necrotizing herpes simplex encephalitis (HSE) were investigated with 99mTc-hexamethylpropyleneamineoxime (HMPAO) SPECT and MR. The clinical course was compared with the neuroimaging results. In the acute stage, the increased HMPAO uptake matched the MR hyperintense signal in the limbic temporal lobe and in the basal ganglia. Protracted inflammation was accompanied by persistently high HMPAO uptake. The sequelae of HSE were characterized by decreased HMPAO uptake and postnecrotic widening of the temporal horns. The "limbic" pattern recognized in both SPECT and MR reflects the basic pathophysiology and neuropathology of HSE. Both methods may be useful in the diagnosis and follow-up of HSE.     

Viral encephalitis in children: detection with technetium-99m HMPAO brain single-photon emission CT and its value in prediction of outcome.

PURPOSETo assess the role of regional cerebral blood flow measured by technetium-99m hexamethyl propyleneamine oxime (HMPAO) brain single-photon emission CT (SPECT) in viral encephalitis of children.METHODSEighteen children diagnosed as having viral encephalitis (12 Epstein-Barr virus, 4 herpes simplex virus, and 2 Japanese B virus) underwent Tc-99m HMPAO brain SPECT and brain MR and/or CT.RESULTSDuring the acute episode, 4 (22%) of the 18 patients had localized abnormality on brain MR and/or CT. Tc-99m HMPAO brain SPECT in the acute phase showed that 17 (94%) of the 18 patients had increased regional cerebral blood flow and 1 (6%) of the 18 children had a normal brain SPECT. Follow-up brain SPECT was performed at least 15 days after the acute episode. In 17 patients with abnormal first brain SPECT, 12 (71%) had normal second brain SPECT and 5 (29%) had decreased regional cerebral blood flow. The group of patients with normal regional cerebral blood flow on the follow-up brain SPECT had a better outcome than the group of patients with decreased regional cerebral blood flow.CONCLUSIONS(a) The Tc-99m HMPAO brain SPECT was abnormal more often than CT or MR in children with acute viral encephalitis and provided better location. (b) In acute episodes of encephalitis, most patients showed locally increased regional cerebral blood flow. (c) After acute episodes, the regional cerebral blood flow returned to normal in most cases. (d) A normal Tc-99m HMPAO brain SPECT in the subacute phase usually indicates a good clinical outcome (no neurologic defect) 1 year after the acute illness in children with viral encephalitis.     

Single-photon emission CT findings in acute Japanese encephalitis.

PURPOSETo determine the usefulness of single-photon emission CT (SPECT) in the diagnosis of acute Japanese encephalitis (JE).METHODSWe examined 10 patients (six men and four women; mean age, 69 years) with viral encephalitis. We divided the cases into two groups: the JE group (n = 4) and the non-JE group (n = 6; two with herpes simplex encephalitis and four with encephalitis of unknown origin). All cases were investigated with 99mTc-hexamethylpropyleneamine oxime (HMPAO) SPECT within 15 days after the onset of symptoms. Two patients in the JE group were also examinated by SPECT at a later stage. In all cases MR imaging was performed after the SPECT study.RESULTSIn the acute stage, all patients in the JE group showed a marked increase of HMPAO uptake that matched the hyperintense area observed on MR images in the thalami and putamina bilaterally. Follow-up SPECT studies of two patients with JE revealed a decrease of HMPAO deposition in the areas of high uptake. None of the patients in the non-JE group had an increased accumulation of HMPAO in the thalami or the putamina.CONCLUSIONSSPECT is helpful in differentiating JE from herpes simplex encephalitis and other types of encephalitis. SPECT may be useful as a diagnostic tool in the early stages of JE.     

Imaging findings of neonatal herpes simplex virus type 2 encephalitis

Introduction The CT, MR, and diffusion-weighted initial and follow-up imaging findings in neonatal herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2) encephalitis were assessed. Methods The clinical, laboratory and imaging findings in 12 patients (eight girls and four boys) with proven neonatal HSV-2 encephalitis with follow-up were retrospectively reviewed. Patterns of brain involvement and distribution of lesions were studied and the contribution of diffusion-weighted imaging to the imaging diagnosis of this disease was explored. A total of 24 CT and 22 MRI studies were performed with a mean follow-up time of 38 months. Results Neonatal HSV-2 encephalitis can be multifocal or limited to only the temporal lobes, brainstem, or cerebellum. The deep gray matter structures were involved in 57% of patients, and hemorrhage was seen in more than half of the patients. CT images were normal or showed mild abnormalities in the early stages of the disease. Conventional MR images may be normal in the early stages of the disease. Lesions were initially seen only by diffusion-weighted imaging in 20% of the patients and this modality showed a substantially more extensive disease distribution in an additional 50% of patients. In 40% of patients, watershed distribution ischemic changes were observed in addition to areas of presumed direct herpetic necrosis. Conclusion Neonatal HSV-2 encephalitis has a variable imaging appearance. Diffusion-weighted MRI is an important adjunct in the imaging evaluation of this disease. Watershed distribution ischemia in areas remote from the primary herpetic lesions may be seen.     

Herpes simplex encephalitis: diffusion MR imaging findings.

We studied five patients with herpes simplex encephalitis type 1 with diffusion-weighted MR imaging, as this sequence provides information regarding tissue integrity. Diffusion-weighted imaging was obtained using the echo-planar sequence. True diffusion images (i.e. b=1000s/mm(2) images), and the ADC (apparent diffusion coefficient) values were studied. In addition, diffusion imaging of 12 normal cases, 46 patients with acute ischemia (cytotoxic edema), and 12 patients with vasogenic edema were studied for comparison. In patients with herpes encephalitis, two distinct types of diffusion imaging findings (on b=1000s/mm(2) images, and ADC maps) were noted: lesions similar to cytotoxic edema, and lesions similar to vasogenic edema. The patients with the former type of lesions had fulminating disease, and were in severe clinical condition. Those with the latter represented early cases, and they were in fairly good clinical condition with a good outcome by prompt therapy. Diffusion imaging appears to be a promising sequence to monitor the changes in the brain tissue in herpes encephalitis, and in other infections as well with respect to restriction of movement (cytotoxic edema) or relatively high-motion (vasogenic edema) of water molecules, providing data on the severity of the disease.     

Contrast-enhanced magnetization transfer saturation imaging improves MR detection of herpes simplex encephalitis.

Cranial MR imaging was performed in three patients in whom herpes simplex encephalitis was subsequently proved. In all cases, the postcontrast T1 weighted MR images obtained with magnetization transfer saturation showed greater central nervous system involvement than was apparent on the conventional MR images. Specifically, the postcontrast magnetization transfer images were superior at delineating generalized meningeal enhancement as well as focal areas of brain involvement not seen on noncontrast T2-weighted images orconventionalpostcontrast T1-weightedimages.     

MRI of herpes simplex encephalitis

Summary The magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) findings in eight patients with herpes simplex meningoencephalitis were reviewed: 14 examinations were analysed. The most striking finding was high signal intensity in the temporal lobe(s) with the typical configuration known from CT. Meningeal enhancement after Gd-DTPA administration was clearly seen in four patients. Haemorrhagic changes are much better seen on MRI than on CT. When adequate motion control can be achieved, MRI becomes the examination of choice in the diagnosis and follow-up of herpes simplex encephalitis. Localized¹H MR spectroscopy also proved promising in the study of neuronal loss.     

Multiple cerebral hematoma and viral encephalitis

Summary A patient with the clinical diagnosis of brain abcess presented with a CT brain scan showing an intracerebral hematoma. Subsequently bilateral spontaneous hyperdense lesions appeared. Autopsy showed the typical findings of viral encephalitis probably due to herpes simplex. It is stressed that the differential diagnosis of intracerebral hematoma includes viral encephalitis in the proper clinical setting.     

Clinico-radiological spectrum of bilateral temporal lobe hyperintensity:a retrospective review

Bilateral temporal lobe hyperintensity (BTH) is a commonly encountered MRI finding in a wide spectrum of clinical conditions and often poses a diagnostic challenge to the radiologist. The purpose of this paper is to elucidate several diseases that manifest as BTH on MRI, based on a retrospective review of cranial MRI of 65 cases seen in our institution between October 2007 and September 2010. We found BTH in different clinical scenarios that included infective diseases (herpes simplex virus, congenital cytomegalovirus infection), epileptic syndrome (mesial temporal sclerosis), neurodegenerative disorders (Alzheimer's disease, frontotemporal dementia, Type 1 myotonic dystrophy), neoplastic conditions (gliomatosis cerebri), metabolic disorders (mitochondrial encephalopathy, lactic acidosis and stroke-like episodes, Wilson's disease, hyperammonemia), dysmyelinating disease (megalencephalic leukoencephalopathy with subcortical cysts), and vascular (cerebral autosomal dominant arteriopathy with subcortical infarcts and leukoencephalopathy) and paraneoplastic (limbic encephalitis) disorders. The conventional MRI findings with advanced MRI such as diffusion-weighted imaging, susceptibility-weighted imaging and MR spectroscopy along with laboratory results are potentially helpful in distinguishing the different clinical conditions and thus affect the early diagnosis and clinical outcome.     

Gyriform calcification after herpes simplex virus encephalitis

Intracranial calcification simulating Sturge-Weber syndrome is rare in association with intracranial infection. A case of bilateral gyriform calcification after herpes simplex virus encephalitis evaluated by repeat computed tomography (CT) scans is presented. To our knowledge this is the first published report of CT findings in this entity.     

单纯疱疹病毒性脑炎CT和MR诊断

报告5例单纯疱疹病毒性脑炎的CT和MR检查结果。并结合国外文献对其影像学特点进行讨论。本病首先累及颞叶,单侧或双侧。与豆状核外缘之间分界清楚为其特征性表现。部分病例可向额叶和枕叶发展。CT平扫为低密度,MR检查具有长T_1和长T_2的特点,在T_2加权图表现为高信号。不增强或线状增强,个别可呈环状增强。病变严重者可有轻度占位效应,病变区内可见小灶状出血。     

小儿单纯疱疹病毒性脑炎的CT诊断

目的 探讨小儿单纯疱疹病毒性脑炎的CT诊断价值。材料与方法 对9例单纯疱疹病毒性脑炎患儿CT资料进行回顾性分析。结果 CT表现异常8例,其中双侧颞叶对称性低密度病变3例,双侧颞叶、额叶、丘脑及中脑对称性低密度伴左侧颞叶片状出血1例,双侧颞叶及右侧额叶非对称性低密度病变1例,右额叶单个低密度病变1例,幕上脑萎缩性病变2例。CT表现正常1例。结论 小儿单纯疱疹病毒性脑炎CT表现以颞叶病变为主,但可同时或单独累及其他脑区;颞叶病变与豆状核分界清楚是颞叶病变发展,累及岛叶、屏状核与外囊的结果。CT表现病变单发、脑水肿及占位征象轻、不伴出血者临床疗效较好,反之则临床疗效较差。CT可以作为单纯疱疹病毒性脑炎患儿的首选检查方法。     

MR findings in neonatal herpes simplex encephalitis type II

The CT findings in neonatal herpes simplex encephalitis (HSE) type II have been previously described, whereas magnetic resonance (MR) findings as yet have not. Early CT findings can be subtle and difficult to detect. However, as the abnormalities evolve, most notably the strikingly increased density of cortical gray matter, they appear highly characteristic of neonatal HSE type II. This case report with neuropathologic verification describes serial MR and CT findings in HSE type II that suggest an etiology of the increased density characteristically seen on CT scans; it does not appear to be hemorrhage or calcification.     

Serial proton MR spectroscopy and diffusion imaging findings in HIV-related herpes simplex encephalitis

We report the case of pathologically proved atypical herpes simplex encephalitis (HSE) in a 40-year-old male patient with AIDS who was followed up by MR imaging, which included diffusion-weighted imaging and proton MR spectroscopy ((1)H-MRS). MR revealed sparing of hippocampi and limbic cortices, necrosis of both cingulate gyri, and cerebellar involvement. Increased diffusivity and severe metabolic alterations were compatible with biopsy findings of necrotizing inflammation. Clinical recovery corresponded with partial metabolite and diffusion normalization and a myo-inositol increase that indicated evolving gliosis formation further corroborated by immunohistochemistry results. (1)H-MRS and diffusion-weighted imaging may both support the diagnosis of HSE in patients with AIDS and help in the follow-up of necrotizing inflammation.