Clinical characteristics and prognosis of posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome with spinal cord involvement / 中华神经科杂志

ABSTRACT

Objective:To investigate the clinical manifestations, imaging features and prognosis of posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome with spinal cord involvement (PRES-SCI).Methods:The clinical data of 1 patient with PRES-SCI admitted to the Department of Neurology of the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University in November 2021 were analyzed, and the data of 38 patients with PRES-SCI reported in domestic and foreign databases and this patient were collected for pooled analysis.Results:The main clinical manifestations of 39 PRES-SCI patients (including this patient) included headache (79.5%, 31/39), visual disturbance (79.5%, 31/39), vomiting (46.2%, 18/39), disturbance of consciousness (38.5%, 15/39), limb weakness (28.2%, 11/39) and seizure (23.1%, 9/39). There were up to 97.4% (38/39) of patients who had significantly elevated blood pressure. The imaging feature was long-segment spinal cord lesion involving central gray matter. Approximately 89.7% (35/39) of the spinal cord lesions originated from the junction of the medulla oblongata and the cervical spinal cord. The median number of abnormal spinal cord segments corresponding to the vertebral body was 9 (the shortest was 4 and the longest was the entire spinal cord). Thirty-eight patients had brain lesions, and the most frequently involved sites were medulla oblongata (82.1%, 32/39), occipital lobe (46.2%, 18/39), pons (43.6%, 17/39), parietal lobe (41.0%, 16/39), and cerebellum (38.5%, 15/39). Among 38 patients completing the follow-up, 31 patients (81.6%) were clinically recovered.Conclusions:Posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome could involve the spinal cord. For patients with long-segment spinal cord lesions and significantly increased blood pressure or other risk factors, PRES-SCI should be considered. Timely identification and treatment could make most patients recovery.