A Case of Encephalitis, Meningoradiculitis and Intestinal Pseudo-Obstruction Caused by Varicella-Zoster Virus

ABSTRACT

A 19-year-old woman developed painful abdominal distension, headache and mental deterioration. Several days later, she complained of paraparesis, urinary incontinence and diuresis. Intestinal pseudo-obstruction was detected by a laparoscopic examination. Brain MRI showed encephalitis with a high signal intensity of the corpus callosum on diffusion-weighted images. In serum and CSF, the varicella-zoster virus (VZV) IgM antibody was positive. After treatment with steroids and acyclovir, her symptoms improved. We report a patient with intestinal pseudo-obstruction, encephalitis and meningoradiculitis caused by VZV without skin lesions.