Alterações histopatológicas da encefalite de Rasmussen

Eight patients with intractable seizures and chronic encephalitis were submitted to surgical treatment: specimens were studied by immunohistochemistry for neuron specific enolase, glial fibrillary acid protein and vimentin. Five of them with advanced disease had severe spongiosis and neuronal loss, with intense reactive gliosis and minimal perivascular inflammatory infiltrate and microglial nodules. The other three cases disclosed minimal spongiosis but evident neuronal loss and gliosis; perivascular inflammatory infiltrates were more accentuated with numerous microglial nodules. All cases were diagnosed in a final stage of the disease with severe cortical giri atrophy diagnosed by neuroimaging methods and hystopathological examination.