scholarly journals Posterior Reversible Encephalopathy Syndrome Caused by Fioricet (Butalbital-Acetaminophen-Caffeine)

2019 ◽  
Vol 2019 ◽  
pp. 1-6 ◽  
Author(s):  
Naomi Cret ◽  
Madalina Halalau ◽  
Shahab Rezvani ◽  
Alexandra Halalau

A common side effect of Fioricet (butalbital-acetaminophen-caffeine) is high blood pressure caused by the caffeine content. We report a case of a 54-year-old female who developed the worst headache of her life after taking 2 tablets of butalbital-acetaminophen-caffeine every six hours for three days before presenting to the emergency department, where her blood pressure was 178/87 mmHg. A brain MRI showed edema in the subcortical white matter of the right occipital lobe, right parietal lobe, and left occipital lobe. Posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome (PRES) was diagnosed. The patient returned within the week with severe headaches, visual hallucinations, and a blood pressure of 150/80 mmHg. Repeat brain MRI showed slight improvement of edema. Her brain imaging studies completely normalized at 10 months after diagnosis. Although the patient received appropriate treatment, she was unable to make full recovery. Due to her inability to work and the constant pain, the patient continues to struggle with depression.

2015 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 290-294 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hind H. Elmalik ◽  
Shereen ElAzzazy ◽  
Khaled S. Salem ◽  
Salha Bujassoum

A 45-year-old female developed neurological symptoms and elevated diastolic blood pressure while on bevacizumab (Avastin) and gemcitabine for recurrent carboplatin-resistant high-grade serous ovarian cancer. A brain MRI diagnosed our patient with posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome. We are discussing her presenting symptoms in this paper as well as the management and the outcome. We emphasize the importance of keeping this rare but very serious complication in all patients receiving bevacizumab.


2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (9) ◽  
pp. e232228
Author(s):  
Luke John Bonavia ◽  
Justin Jackson ◽  
Richard Jurevics

We report a 71-year-old woman who presented with Posterior Reversible Encephalopathy Syndrome (PRES) in the setting of acute pancreatitis. On day 3 of her admission, she developed transient right-sided upper and lower limb weakness, reduced visual acuity and encephalopathy, initially regarded as an acute stroke. Brain MRI fluid-attenuated inversion recovery (FLAIR) T2 imaging performed the same day confirmed occipital and parietal hyperdensities consistent with PRES. Her blood pressure never exceeded 150/75 mm Hg throughout the course of the admission. Our case demonstrates PRES in the setting of acute pancreatitis with only a relatively moderate elevation in blood pressure. In order to prevent unnecessary intervention in the setting of presumed acute stroke, it is important to consider the potential differential diagnoses including PRES as rare masquerade of acute stroke or transient ischaemic attack.


2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (1) ◽  
pp. e231687
Author(s):  
Vincenzo Di Stefano ◽  
Marianna Gabriella Rispoli ◽  
Marco Onofrj ◽  
Maria Vittoria De Angelis

Typical posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome (PRES) is a clinical-neuroradiological entity characterised by bilateral white matter oedema, which is usually symmetrical and totally reversible in 2–3 weeks. A 46-year-old man presented with a persistent headache and visual blurring in the right eye. On admission, the clinical examination revealed minimal unsteadiness of gait and elevated blood pressure. A brain MRI showed a hyperintense signal on T2-weighted sequences in the whole brainstem, extended to the spinal cord (C2–C6), the left insula and the right cerebellum. When his blood pressure was controlled, his symptoms gradually improved. The follow-up MRI scan at 3 weeks revealed a dramatic regression of the hyperintense lesions on T2-weighted sequences. The differential diagnosis of PRES is very wide, especially in the case of conspicuous brainstem involvement. Treatable causes of white matter oedema should be always kept in mind to avoid misdiagnosis and prevent complications, such as intracranial haemorrhage.


2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jayawardane Pathiranage Roneesha Lakmali ◽  
Kanapathipillei Thirumavalavan ◽  
Danapala Dissanayake

Abstract Background Leptospirosis is a zoonotic spirochetal disease caused by Leptospira interrogans. The clinical presentation ranges from an asymptomatic state to a fatal multiorgan dysfunction. Neurological manifestations including aseptic meningitis, spinal cord and peripheral nerve involvement, cranial neuropathies and cerebellar syndrome are well recognized with varying frequencies among patients with this disease. Posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome is a very rare occurrence in leptospirosis and only two cases are reported in the medical literature up to now. We report a case of posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome in a patient with leptospirosis with rhabdomyolysis and acute kidney injury. Case presentation A 21 year-old male presented with fever and oliguric acute kidney injury with rhabdomyolysis. A diagnosis of leptospirosis was made and he was being managed according to the standard practice together with regular hemodialysis. The clinical condition was improving gradually. On day 8 of the illness, he developed headache and sudden painless complete bilateral vision loss followed by several brief generalized tonic clonic seizure attacks. Examination was significant for a Glasgow Coma Scale of 14/15, blood pressure of 150/90 mmHg and complete bilateral blindness. The findings of magnetic resonance imaging of the brain were compatible with posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome. He was managed with blood pressure control and antiepileptics with supportive measures and standard treatment for leptospirosis and made a complete recovery. Conclusion Posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome, though very rare with leptospirosis, should be considered as a differential diagnosis in a patient with new onset visual symptoms and seizures, especially during the immune phase. Optimal supportive care together with careful blood pressure control and seizure management would yield a favourable outcome in this reversible entity.


2021 ◽  
Vol 14 (7) ◽  
pp. e242231
Author(s):  
Catarina Bernardes ◽  
Cristiana Silva ◽  
Gustavo Santo ◽  
Inês Correia

A 71-year-old woman presented to the emergency room with dysphonia, diplopia, dysphagia and generalised weakness since that day. Neurological examination revealed eye adduction limitation, ptosis, hypoactive reflexes and gait ataxia. Blood and cerebrospinal fluid analysis and brain CT were normal. Electromyography revealed a sensory axonal polyneuropathy. She was diagnosed with Miller-Fisher syndrome (MFS) and started on intravenous immunoglobulin. Two days after intravenous immunoglobulin treatment was completed, she developed a sustained hypertensive profile and presented a generalised tonic-clonic seizure. Brain MRI was suggestive of posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome (PRES) and supportive treatment was implemented with progressive improvement. PRES may be a possible complication of MFS not only due to autonomic and inflammatory dysfunctions, but also as a consequence of its treatment. Patients with MFS should be maintained under close surveillance, especially in the first days and preferably in intermediate care units.


BMC Neurology ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Fatme Seval Ismail ◽  
Johannes van de Nes ◽  
Ilka Kleffner

Abstract Background Posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome (PRES) is clinical-neuroradiologically defined and potentially reversible, so there are limited data about histopathological findings. We aimed to describe the clinical and paraclinical features of patients with PRES with regard to its reversibility. Methods This retrospective case series encompasses 15 PRES cases out of 1300 evaluated patients from a single German center between January 1, 2010, and June 15, 2020. PRES was established according to the diagnostic criteria as proposed by the Berlin PRES Study 2012. One of the cases studied was subject to brain autopsy. Results From the 15 patients studied (median age 53 years, range 17–73; 11 female), 67 % presented with epileptic seizures, 40 % suffered from encephalopathy with reduced consciousness and 53 % developed delirium, while 47 % had headache and visual disturbances. Subcortical brain MRI abnormalities related to PRES were observed in all patients. One patient developed spinal ischemia and another Guillain-Barré syndrome in addition to PRES. Hypertensive blood pressure was the main underlying/trigger condition in all patients. Clinical symptoms and MRI changes were not reversible in 42 %, even progressive in 3 out of these 5 patients. Median time from symptom onset to diagnosis in these non-reversible cases was 7 days (range 0–13), while the median delay in diagnosis in the reversible group was 1 day (range 0–3). Cerebellar/brain stem involvement and status epilepticus were more frequently in patients with non-reversible disease course. Mortality due to PRES occurred in 13 % of these patients. Neuropathological examination of the brain of a 57-year-old female patient revealed major leukencephalopathic changes, fibrinoid necrosis of endothelial cells and fresh petechial hemorrhages in accordance with PRES. Conclusions Our case series demonstrates that PRES was not reversible in 42 % of the studied patients. Delay in diagnosis seems to contribute to limited reversibility and poor outcome.


2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 143-145
Author(s):  
Maythem Abdulhassan Al-Kaisy

Objective: During the late 2019, a group of patients had unexplained chest infections in Wuhan which turned out to be the new pandemic coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). New neurological symptoms have been reported in COVID-19 patients. Posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome (PRES) is a new neurological finding and is associated or caused by COVID-19. Case Presentation: A 32-year-old lady, with no medical background had COVID-19 infection and needed mechanical ventilation. After surviving the intensive care, she started to have multiple seizures that required general anesthesia to be aborted. The patient turned out to have PRES. Conclusion: PRES is a neurological syndrome causing seizures, headaches, and blurred vision. It is usually associated with high blood pressure, renal failure, and other risk factors. The patient in this case had nearly normal blood pressure, but still had a diagnosis of PRES. The new reported neurological symptoms associated with COVID-19 infection need further research and attention from the academic society to predict and prevent the morbidity and mortality of COVID-19 patients.


Stroke ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 51 (Suppl_1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Molly Bates ◽  
Kyle Darpel ◽  
Nneka Amadife ◽  
Adam Dugan ◽  
Jessica D Lee

Introduction: Several theories exist regarding the pathogenesis of posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome (PRES). One theory suggests that PRES occurs when systemic blood pressure exceeds the upper limit of cerebral autoregulation. Endothelial dysfunction has been proposed as an alternative pathogenesis to account for PRES outside the setting of acute hypertension. This mechanism has been implicated in other conditions associated with PRES including autoimmune diseases, cytotoxic medications, sepsis, and eclampsia. The purpose of this study was to determine if COPD, a disease known to cause endothelial dysfunction, has a causative association with the development of PRES. Methods: A single center retrospective, age-matched, case-control study was performed from January 2013 to June 2019 comparing patients discharged with a primary diagnosis of PRES to a control group with acute ischemic stroke. Demographics, medical comorbidities, initial blood pressure, and clinical outcomes were compared between the two groups. For categorical variables, p-values were calculated using χ2 and Fisher’s exact tests. For continuous variables, p-values were calculated using two-sample t-tests. The effect of COPD and acute hypoxic respiratory failure on PRES status was investigated using multivariate logistic regression. Results: A total of 94 PRES subjects and 109 control subjects were included for analysis. Mean age did not differ between the two groups; however, the PRES group was more likely to be female (78.7% vs. 49.5%, p<0.001). COPD was present in 26.6% (n=25) of cases and 11% (n= 12) of controls (odds ratio 4.12, p=0.003). Occurrence of hypertension did not differ significantly between the two groups (78.0% vs 86.2%). Among patients with PRES in the setting of COPD (n=25), 60% (n=16) did not meet criteria for hypertensive emergency. Controlling for hypertensive emergency status in a multivariate logistic regression analysis, patients with COPD were 3.21 times more likely to develop PRES (p= 0.004). Conclusions: To our knowledge, very few reports of PRES in the setting of COPD have been described in the literature and no association of PRES and COPD has been defined to date. Our data support the role of COPD as a risk factor in the development of PRES.


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