SSPE - Subacute Sclerosing Panencephaltis
tsen at primus.com.au
Wed Sep 13 23:00:39 EST 2000
I desperately need HELP for my 14 yr old nephew. He was treated in June 2000
on subacute sclerosing panencephalitis (SSPE). with Isoprinosine at 500 mg 6
times a day (since 16 June'2000) with no marked improvement. I am
worry about his condition may deteriorate very fast if not properly treated
Please advise and recommendat whether or not Isoprinosine is the effective
medicine or other medicine to treat SSPE. If not I would appreciate if you
could recommend where I ask for 2nd Second Opinion?
Listed below is the extract of the Medical Report:-
The patient is a 14 yr old student from Malaysia. His illness dated
back to February this year, when he began to experience what appeared to
be drop attacks. These attacks which can occur several times a day, are
brief lasting only a few seconds each time. There is no actual loss of
consciousness and he is usually able to get up himself immediately after
an attack. During some of these attacks, his parents noticed that he
has tonic posturing of his limbs and eyes.Over the past few months, his
family members also observed some behavioural changes. His school grades
have deteriorated markedly and he tended to sleep a lot more than usual.
He is, however still able to handle activities of daily living
without any assistances. There is no family history of epilepsy. He was
immunised against measles at the age of 15 months.
On examination, he has no focal signs. Fundoscopy showed no
abnormality. He was orientated to time, place and person. The attention
span was poor and he was unable to perform the serial of 7 tests. His
memory to recent events was poor although distant memory was much
The MRI scan of the brain showed no abnormality. The EEG showed 2
Electrographic seizures. Inter-ictally there were brief bursts of high
amplitude delta wave with admixed sharp waves. The serum electrolytes
and blood count was normal. The CRF examination showed normal protein
and cells. The CRF 1gG measles titer was positive at 1/64 +/- dilution.
The serum measles antibody titer was positive at 1/128.
Based on the clinical presentation and high CSF and blood measles
antibody titers, it is a likely that he has subacute sclerosing
panencephalitis (SSPE). He was started on treatment with Isoprinosine at
500 mg 6 times a day (since 16 June 2000). His seizures have been
controlled since has was started on Epilim Chrono 300mg bd. He was
seizures have been controlled since he was started on Epilim chrono
300mg bd. He was last reviewed in September this year and his mother has
not noticed any improvement in his cognitive functions.
Dept. of Neurology
National Neurology Institute
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