Absence of Cerebrospinal Fluid Pleocytosis in Encephalitis

Abstract

Background Early diagnosis of encephalitis involves identifying signs of neuroinflammation, including cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) pleocytosis. However, an absence of CSF pleocytosis in encephalitis has been described, most notably in autoimmune encephalitis. We examined clinical characteristics and outcomes associated with the absence or presence of CSF white blood cell pleocytosis (≥5 cells/µL), to inform timely diagnosis and management of encephalitis. Methods This retrospective study compares initial CSF profiles in 597 adult patients with all-cause encephalitis. Results Of the 597 patients, 446 (74.7%) had CSF pleocytosis while 151 (25.3%) did not. CSF pleocytosis occurred more commonly in infectious cases (200/446, 44.8%), along with 59 (13.2%) autoimmune cases, comprised chiefly of anti-N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor (anti-NMDAR) encephalitis (37/59, 62.7%). Notably, the group without pleocytosis comprised similar proportions of infectious (47/151, 31.1%) and autoimmune (38/151, 25.92%; P >. 05) encephalitis. Among those with infectious encephalitis, 47/247 (19%) had an absence of pleocytosis, including 18/76 (23.7%) with HSV-1 encephalitis. The absence of pleocytosis was associated with a decreased rate of acyclovir administration (47.7% in patients without pleocytosis vs 71.1% in patients with pleocytosis; P