HEPATITIS E VIRUS AND NEUROLOGIC DISORDERS

Abstract

Information about the spectrum of disease caused by hepatitis E virus (HEV) genotype 3 is emerging. During 2004–2009, at 2 hospitals in the United Kingdom and France, among 126 patients with locally acquired acute and chronic HEV genotype 3 infection, neurologic complications developed in 7 (5.5%): infl ammatory polyradiculopathy (n = 3), Guillain-Barré syndrome (n = 1), bilateral brachial neuritis (n = 1), encephalitis (n = 1), and ataxia/proximal myopathy (n = 1). Three cases occurred in nonimmunocompromised patients with acute HEV infection, and 4 were in immunocompromised patients with chronic HEV infection. HEV RNA was detected in cerebrospinal fl uid of all 4 patients with chronic HEV infection but not in that of 2 patients with acute HEV infection. Neurologic outcomes were complete resolution (n = 3), improvement with residual neurologic defi cit (n = 3), and no improvement (n = 1). Neurologic disorders are an emerging extrahepatic manifestation of HEV infection.