Intraventricular hemorrhage as clinical presentation of herpes simplex virus encephalitis. A case report and review of the literature.

OBJECTIVE

Herpes simplex virus encephalitis (HSVE) represents the most common cause of sporadic encephalitis in humans. The development of intracerebral hematomas is rare and late during the course of HSVE. To report a case of a patient with HSVE who initially presented a diffuse intracranial hemorrhage with predominant intraventricular bleeding.

CASE REPORT: A 66-year-old man was admitted to the Emergency Department with acute headache. Antecedents: alcohol consumption and ethylic hepatopathy. The brain computed tomography showed acute tetraventricular hemorrhage and hydrocephalus. The blood analysis showed pancytopenia and alteration of all hepatic parameters. After external drainage of cerebrospinal fluid the patient presented a worsening of headache, disorientation, mild left hemiparesis, neck stiffness and temperature of 37.6 °C. The cerebrospinal fluid was hemorrhagic, with 3 lymphocytes/mm3, 60 mg/dL of proteins and PCR positive for Herpes simplex virus type 1. The patient improved with intravenous acyclovir, however he experienced several medical complications which caused his dead.

DISCUSSION: The patient presented an atypical cerebral bleeding related to HSVE because the development of hematoma was early and the topography of hemorrhage was basically intraventricular. Probably, both atypical characteristics were related to thrombocytopenia and severe coagulation disorder. This case expands the spectrum of cerebrovascular disorders associated with HSVE.