Encephalopathy

Encephalopathy (/ɛnˌsɛfəˈlɒpəθi/; from Ancient Greek: ἐνκέφαλος 'brain' + πάθος 'suffering') means any disorder or disease of the brain, especially chronic degenerative conditions. In modern usage, encephalopathy does not refer to a single disease, but rather to a syndrome of overall brain dysfunction; this syndrome can have many different organic and inorganic causes. Encephalopathy (/ɛnˌsɛfəˈlɒpəθi/; from Ancient Greek: ἐνκέφαλος 'brain' + πάθος 'suffering') means any disorder or disease of the brain, especially chronic degenerative conditions. In modern usage, encephalopathy does not refer to a single disease, but rather to a syndrome of overall brain dysfunction; this syndrome can have many different organic and inorganic causes. The hallmark of encephalopathy is an altered mental state or delirium. Characteristic of the altered mental state is impairment of the cognition, attention, orientation, sleep–wake cycle and consciousness. An altered state of consciousness may range from failure of selective attention to drowsiness. Hypervigilance may be present; with or without: cognitive deficits, headache, epileptic seizures, myoclonus (involuntary twitching of a muscle or group of muscles) or asterixis ('flapping tremor' of the hand when wrist is extended). Depending on the type and severity of encephalopathy, common neurological symptoms are loss of cognitive function, subtle personality changes, and an inability to concentrate. Other neurological signs may include dysarthria, hypomimia, problems with movements (they can be clumsy or slow), ataxia, tremor. Other neurological signs may include involuntary grasping and sucking motions, nystagmus (rapid, involuntary eye movement), jactitation (restless picking at things characteristic of severe infection), and respiratory abnormalities such as Cheyne-Stokes respiration (cyclic waxing and waning of tidal volume), apneustic respirations and post-hypercapnic apnea. Focal neurological deficits are less common. Wernicke encephalopathy can co-occur with Korsakoff alcoholic syndrome, characterized by amnestic-confabulatory syndrome: retrograde amnesia, anterograde amnesia, confabulations (invented memories), poor recall and disorientation. Anti-NMDA receptor encephalitis is the most common autoimmune encephalitis. It can cause paranoid and grandiose delusions, agitation, hallucinations (visual and auditory), bizarre behavior, fear, short-term memory loss, and confusion. HIV encephalopathy can lead to dementia.