[Clinical analysis of 78 cases of parasitic encephalopathy].

OBJECTIVE

To investigate the epidemiology, clinical characteristics, therapeutic approaches and outcomes of parasitic encephalopathy.

METHODS

A retrospective study was carried out to analyze 78 cases of parasitic encephalopathy in Huashan Hospital between June 2003 and June 2008.

RESULTS

There were 52 male and 26 female patients with a mean age of (34.5+/-11.4) years. Among these patients, 32.1% (25/78) had a history of eating raw, neurocysticercosis accounted for 78.2% (61/78), cerebral sparganosis 15.4% (12/78), cerebral paragonimiasis 3.8% (3/78), and cerebral toxoplasmosis 2.6% (2/78). The common clinical features were epilepsy, headache, nausea, vomiting, vision and hearing loss, facial paralysis and mental retardation. Internal medical therapy resulted in an improvement in 69.2% of the patients. 7 out of 9 patients got improved or cured by combined surgical and internal medical treatment. 42 cases were diagnosed as parasitic encephalopathy while 36 cases (46.1%) were once misdiagnosed as other disorders.

CONCLUSION

Parasitic encephalopathy is associated with a history of eating raw, with a high rate of misdiagnosis. Internal medicine combined with surgery is an effective way for the therapy.