tetano
Editor, Senior Moderator
Neurologist
. 2021 Nov 4;26(6):274-275.
doi: 10.1097/NRL.0000000000000359.
Wernicke Encephalopathy From Olfactory Dysfunction After COVID-19 Infection
David Ross Landzberg[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Ekta Bery[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Suhasini Chico[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Sookyong Koh[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Barbara Weissman[SUP] 2 [/SUP]
Affiliations
Abstract
Introduction: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has affected millions of people worldwide and is caused by infection from the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 pathogen. While COVID-19 most commonly affects the respiratory system, multiple neurological complications have been associated with this pathogen. We report a case of Wernicke encephalopathy in a young girl with poor oral intake secondary to anosmia and dysgeusia after a COVID-19 infection.
Case report: After a recent infection of COVID-19, a 15-year-old girl developed an overwhelming noxious metallic tase resulting in a 30 lb weight loss from being unable to tolerate oral foods. She presented to the hospital 3 months later with bilateral horizontal conjugate gaze palsies, up beating vertical nystagmus, difficulty with limb coordination and gait ataxia. She was found to have a thiamine level of 51 nmol/L (reference range: 70 to 180 nmol/L) and her brain magnetic resonance imaging showed fluid-attenuated inversion recovery and diffusion-weighted imaging changes in the periaqueductal gray and dorsomedial thalami suggestive of Wernicke encephalopathy. She was started on parenteral thiamine replacement and had significant neurological improvement.
Conclusions: As this pandemic continues to progress, more long-term neurological sequelae from COVID-19 such as Wernicke encephalopathy can be expected. Strong clinical suspicion for these complications is needed to allow for earlier diagnosis and faster treatment initiation.
. 2021 Nov 4;26(6):274-275.
doi: 10.1097/NRL.0000000000000359.
Wernicke Encephalopathy From Olfactory Dysfunction After COVID-19 Infection
David Ross Landzberg[SUP] 1 [/SUP], Ekta Bery[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Suhasini Chico[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Sookyong Koh[SUP] 2 [/SUP], Barbara Weissman[SUP] 2 [/SUP]
Affiliations
- PMID: 34734907
- DOI: 10.1097/NRL.0000000000000359
Abstract
Introduction: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has affected millions of people worldwide and is caused by infection from the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus-2 pathogen. While COVID-19 most commonly affects the respiratory system, multiple neurological complications have been associated with this pathogen. We report a case of Wernicke encephalopathy in a young girl with poor oral intake secondary to anosmia and dysgeusia after a COVID-19 infection.
Case report: After a recent infection of COVID-19, a 15-year-old girl developed an overwhelming noxious metallic tase resulting in a 30 lb weight loss from being unable to tolerate oral foods. She presented to the hospital 3 months later with bilateral horizontal conjugate gaze palsies, up beating vertical nystagmus, difficulty with limb coordination and gait ataxia. She was found to have a thiamine level of 51 nmol/L (reference range: 70 to 180 nmol/L) and her brain magnetic resonance imaging showed fluid-attenuated inversion recovery and diffusion-weighted imaging changes in the periaqueductal gray and dorsomedial thalami suggestive of Wernicke encephalopathy. She was started on parenteral thiamine replacement and had significant neurological improvement.
Conclusions: As this pandemic continues to progress, more long-term neurological sequelae from COVID-19 such as Wernicke encephalopathy can be expected. Strong clinical suspicion for these complications is needed to allow for earlier diagnosis and faster treatment initiation.