This is a great description.
AE Alliance and Hashimoto’s Encephalopathy SREAT Alliance (HESA) are excited to announce the virtual conference: ‘Autoimmune Encephalitis: Building Bridges.’ The aim of this conference is to enhance patient care and improve outcomes for those affected by AE, by promoting a multidisciplinary approach to diagnosis, treatment, and recovery. ‘Building Bridges’, is a place to exchange ideas, …
We had the pleasure of having psychiatrist Stephen Rush, MD discuss the role of psychiatry in AE at our recent Midwest Support Group meeting. Dr. Rush is an Associate professor of Psychiatry and the Medical Director of Ambulatory Services at the University of Cincinnati Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Neuroscience. In his practice he not …
Vitamin D (cholecalciferol) is a nutrient found in some foods like fatty fish that can be added to your diet as a supplement. Our body makes vitamin D when our skin is directly exposed to the sun, and most people meet at least some of their vitamin D needs this way. Vitamin D is required …
Dr. Ryan Kammeyer and Dr. Amanda Piquet (University of Colorado) discuss a patient with autoimmune encephalitis (AE) with multiple auto-antibodies and review the literature to look at how these multiple auto-antibodies might relate to an underlying malignancy, and how unique features of the auto-antibodies may blend together into a new presentation. AE can occur with …
NMDAR encephalitis is the most common form of autoimmune encephalitis. It can affect people of all ages, though it is often seen in children and young adults, and it affects women more frequently than men. Treatment is classically described as first-line immunotherapy (corticosteroids, intravenous immunoglobulin, or plasma exchange) and second-line immunotherapy (cyclophosphamide and rituximab). However, …
Autism, or autism spectrum disorder (ASD), refers to a broad range of conditions characterized by challenges with social skills, repetitive behaviors, speech, and nonverbal communication. There are many subtypes of autism, most influenced by a combination of genetic and environmental factors. The current prevalence of ASD is estimated to be 1.5% or higher in developed …
Autoimmune psychosis: an international consensus on an approach to the diagnosis and management of psychosis of suspected autoimmune origin. A group of renowned international physicians, led by Dr. Tom Pollak and senior authors Prof. Souhel Najjar, Prof. Karl Bechter and Prof. Angela Vincent, worked together to create a consensus on diagnosis and treatment of autoimmune …
Patients with AE often require care in an ICU. A group at Johns Hopkins led by Dr. John Probasco, discusses clinical presentation, diagnostic approaches, and treatment options for AE with particular focus on the central role the intensivist plays in this process. In a retrospective study at a tertiary referral center, 55% of patients meeting …
This week the FDA approved the initiation of a phase III clinical trial of the oncology supportive care drug Tocilizumab (Actemra – Genentech) for the treatment of hospitalized adult patients with severe COVID-19 pneumonia. Tocilizumab is a humanized anti-interleukin (IL)-6 receptor monoclonal antibody, which blocks IL-6-mediated signal transduction. Given the crucial role of IL-6 in stimulating …
Autoimmune encephalitis (AE) is an important and treatable cause of acute encephalitis. Diagnosis of AE in a developing child is challenging because of overlap in clinical presentations with other diseases and the complexity of normal behavior changes. Existing diagnostic criteria for adult AE require modification to be applied to children, who differ from adults in …
