Rubella myelitis and encephalitis in childhood. A report of two cases with magnetic resonance imaging.

Two children are described with postnatally acquired acute rubella which induced neurological disease. The first patient with restricted transverse myelitis (Th 11-12) was remarkable for the positive result obtained by the magnetic response (MR) technique of the spinal cord. In the second patient the clinical examination demonstrated a circumscribed, however severe, lasting defect in the extrapyramidal motor system with facial muscle dystonia and complete anarthria; in the latter case the CSF contained rubella specific IgM five days after the onset of exanthema. No abnormalities were noticed by MR five weeks after the clinical onset. The possible significance of MR imaging in virus-induced encephalomyelitis is discussed.