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Podcast by Elizabeth Nakano tells the story of surviving autoimmune encephalitis July 13, 2016

In 2014, Jake Pickard watched doctors try to save his girlfriend’s brain. What happened would dramatically change their relationship and their lives. Reporter Elizabeth Nakano headed to Eastham, MA, to interview them about the aftermath. Elizabeth’s story titled, Reset, can be heard through the Public Radio Exchange website. We are grateful to Elizabeth, Marirose, Jake, and PRX for […]

There’s no P in my TSD June 29, 2016

“Mommy, are you okay?” an unfamiliar woman’s voice called through the hospital room’s bathroom door. It was 6 a.m. and she heard me retching, again. I hated that the hospital staff called me Mommy when the only one entitled to do so had lost his ability to speak. After six weeks in the neurology unit, […]

Diagnostic Criteria for AE Released June 23, 2016

A newly released precis provides clear diagnostic criteria for autoimmune encephalitis. This effort, lead by Dr. Domingo Escudero, Dr. Francesc Graus and Dr. Josep Dalmau, summarizes the Lancet Neurology article “A clinical approach to autoimmune encephalitis“. The Lancet Neurology article  provides the first broadly accepted criteria for diagnosing autoimmune encephalitis.  A previous AE Alliance blog reviewed the article and it’s connection to the first International […]

“When the Body Attacks the Mind” June 22, 2016

The Atlantic has published the story of AE survivor Sasha Egger. Sasha and his parents fight to survive a medical system that too often silos psychiatry from neurology.  In telling the story of their son Sasha, Daniel and Helen Egger, co-founders of the AE Alliance, tell the story of many AE families. A story of not […]

Imagine waking up with no memory of the past 3 months June 21, 2016

Imagine waking up in the hospital with no memory of the past three months. Amanda and her mother talk about her treatment and recovery from AE; including the care she received at UPenn Medical Center in this four-and-a-half minute video. Amanda’s mother, Kerri, told AEA, “We wanted to share our experience to help others. Upon learning […]

Former Bear, Dallas Cowboy with autoimmune encephalitis attempts football comeback June 16, 2016

Pro Football Talk’s Josh Alper writes, Former Texans first-round pick Amobi Okoye made an appearance at this year’s draft to announce a Texans pick and then made an announcement of his own about his hopes of returning to the field after recovering from autoimmune encephalitis. Okoye, who also played for the Bears, spent three months in […]

Maddi beats autoimmune encephalitis June 7, 2016

The following is an excerpt from Maddi Beats AE, a read-worthy blog by Tricia Rispoli. “I wasn’t sure what time it was, but I knew it was really early. I hadn’t slept yet. I was too afraid to roll over and check the time and wake Maddi, but I knew it had been hours. This was the […]

Anti-N-Methyl-D-Aspartate Receptor Encephalitis: A new challenging entity for consultation-liaison psychiatrist May 30, 2016

Anti-N-Methyl-D-Aspartate Receptor Encephalitis: A new challenging entity for consultation-liaison psychiatrist Maccaferri et al Brain Disord Ther 2016 May; 5(2):215 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4959779/ Anti-N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor encephalitis is a relatively newly identified autoimmune neuropsychiatric disorder that predominantly affects children and young adults. Although psychiatric symptoms are highly prevalent and frequently severe, it has mainly been reported in neurological, but […]

Rituximab shows second-line promise in autoimmune limbic encephalitis May 17, 2016

“Rituximab is effective and safe as a second-line immunotherapy for autoimmune limbic encephalitis, regardless of autoantibody status. Additional monthly rituximab therapy might potentiate the efficacy of rituximab,” concludes the authors of this Rituximab study published in medical journal, Neurology.  Lucy Piper of News Medical, an online, open-access medical information provider has published the article”Rituximab shows second-line promise in […]

AEA board member Susannah Cahalan gives keynote address in Florence, Italy May 10, 2016

Susannah Cahalan, journalist and author of The New York Times best-selling book Brain on Fire, and board of directors’ member of the Autoimmune Encephalitis Alliance, gave the keynote address at the Fifth Schizophrenia International Research Society conference in Florence, Italy (the podcast link is below). She shared her story of being struck down, and recovering […]