ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: To report inpatient rehabilitation outcome in severe cases of West Nile virus (WNV) infection. DESIGN: Retrospective case series. SETTING: Freestanding rehabilitation hospital. PARTICIPANTS: Five consecutive patients admitted to an inpatient rehabilitation hospital with proven WNV infection. PATIENTS: had severe neurologic manifestations and functional deficits. INTERVENTIONS: Not applicable. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURE: FIM instrument scores. RESULTS: On admission, overall FIM scores ranged from 31 to 68, with a mean of 44.40+/-15.85; overall FIM scores ranged from 52 to 90, with a mean of 76.00+/-15.03 at discharge. CONCLUSIONS: All patients demonstrated significant functional improvement ( P <.001). Length of stay ranged from 10 to 71 days, with a mean of 32 days. Lower functional outcome and higher cost of care were noted in patients and was attributable to severe muscle weakness and axonal neuropathy.
