Cerebritis

Cerebritis is an infection of the brain that normally leads to the formation of an abscess within the brain itself. It is the inflammation of the cerebrum which performs a number of important functions, such as memory and speech. It is also defined as a purulent nonencapsulated parenchymal infection of brain which is characterized by nonspecific features on CT (ill-defined low density area with peripheral enhancement) and cannot reliably be distinguished from neoplasms. Cerebritis is an infection of the brain that normally leads to the formation of an abscess within the brain itself. It is the inflammation of the cerebrum which performs a number of important functions, such as memory and speech. It is also defined as a purulent nonencapsulated parenchymal infection of brain which is characterized by nonspecific features on CT (ill-defined low density area with peripheral enhancement) and cannot reliably be distinguished from neoplasms. Cerebritis usually occurs as a result of an underlying condition, which causes the inflammation of the brain tissue. It is commonly found in patients with lupus. Lupus cerebritis may occur in adults and children. The duration of the central nervous system involvement may vary from a few minutes, as in classic migraine or a transient ischemic attack, to years, as in dementia. Resulting neurological deficits may be transient or permanent, occasionally resulting in death. The symptoms of cerebritis may range from mild to severe. The severity of the symptoms varies based on the degree of swelling and on how elevated is the intracranial pressure. Mild symptoms include headaches, depression, anxiety and in some cases, memory loss. In some cases inflammation of brain can be seen if the brain or the nervous system is attacked as a result of problems with the immune system. The serious problems caused because of inflammation include headaches, seizures, vision problems, dizziness, behavior changes and even stroke. Severe lupus cerebritis symptoms include psychosis, dementia, peripheral neuropathy, cerebellar ataxia (failure of muscular coordination, usually on one side of the body), and chorea (jerky, involuntary movements). Stroke incidence is 3-20% in systemic lupus patients, and is highest in the first five years of the disease. Peripheral neuropathy (carpal tunnel syndrome, for example) occurs in more than 20% of systemic lupus patients and cranial nerve palsies occur in 10-15%. Lupus systemic erythematosus is one of the most common causes of cerebritis as it is believed that more than half of the patients with lupus from the United States suffer from a degree or another of lupus cerebritis.