Serum neuron-specific enolase in human status epilepticus.

Neuron-specific enolase (NSE) is a sensitive marker of brain injury after stroke, global ischemia, and coma. We report changes in serum NSE (s-NSE) in 19 patients who sustained status epilepticus. s-NSE peaked within 24 to 48 hours after status epilepticus. The mean peak s-NSE level for the entire group was elevated compared with the levels for normal controls (24.87 ng/ml versus 5.36 ng/ml, p = 0.0001) and for epileptic controls (24.87 ng/ml versus 4.61 ng/ml, p = 0.0001). The mean peak s-NSE level for the 11 subjects without an acute neurologic insult (15.44 ng/ml) was also significantly increased compared with levels for normal and epileptic controls. Further, s-NSE was significantly correlated with outcome and duration. We conclude that s-NSE is a promising in vivo marker of brain injury in status epilepticus and warrants further study in larger populations.

Neuron-specific enolase is increased after nonconvulsive status epilepticus.

Serum neuron-specific enolase (s-NSE), a marker of brain injury and acute seizures, was increased in 2 patients with nonconvulsive SE. Neither patient had an acute neurologic insult other than nonconvulsive SE (NCSE) accounting for s-NSE changes. Increase in s-NSE provides further in vivo evidence of transient brain injury after NCSE.