Book contents
- Autoimmune Encephalitis and Related Disorders of the Nervous System
- Autoimmune Encephalitis and Related Disorders of the Nervous System
- Copyright page
- Dedication
- Contents
- Clinical Vignettes
- Videos
- Preface
- Abbreviations
- Section 1 Overview
- Chapter 1 Importance, Definitions, History, Classification, and Frequency of the Autoimmune Encephalitides
- Chapter 2 General Approach to Diagnosis
- Chapter 3 Pathogenesis and Disease Mechanisms in Neuronal Antibody-Mediated Encephalitis
- Section 2 Antibodies and Antigens
- Section 3 Specific Syndromes and Diseases
- Section 4 Autoimmunity in Neurological and Psychiatric Diseases
- Index
- References
Chapter 1 - Importance, Definitions, History, Classification, and Frequency of the Autoimmune Encephalitides
from Section 1 - Overview
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 27 January 2022
- Autoimmune Encephalitis and Related Disorders of the Nervous System
- Autoimmune Encephalitis and Related Disorders of the Nervous System
- Copyright page
- Dedication
- Contents
- Clinical Vignettes
- Videos
- Preface
- Abbreviations
- Section 1 Overview
- Chapter 1 Importance, Definitions, History, Classification, and Frequency of the Autoimmune Encephalitides
- Chapter 2 General Approach to Diagnosis
- Chapter 3 Pathogenesis and Disease Mechanisms in Neuronal Antibody-Mediated Encephalitis
- Section 2 Antibodies and Antigens
- Section 3 Specific Syndromes and Diseases
- Section 4 Autoimmunity in Neurological and Psychiatric Diseases
- Index
- References
Summary
About 20 years ago the group of diseases currently known as ‘autoimmune encephalitis’ or ‘antibody-mediated encephalitis’ was unknown and the entire field of ‘autoimmune neurology’ non-existent. Since then, 18 autoimmune encephalitis and the corresponding syndromes have been described, including 16 in which the antigens are expressed on the cell surface of neurons and two on the surface of glial cells. The characterization of these autoimmune encephalitis was facilitated by the cumulative knowledge provided by research on autoimmune disorders of the neuromuscular junction (myasthenia gravis and Lambert–Eaton myasthenic syndrome) and the paraneoplastic neurological syndromes. Up to 12.6 per 100,000 persons are affected by encephalitis annually. Of these, it has been estimated that 20–30% are caused by autoimmune mechanisms. In children the most frequent types of autoimmune encephalitis are acute disseminated encephalomyelitis (ADEM), anti-MOG, and anti-NMDAR encephalitis. In young adults, particularly women, anti-NMDAR encephalitis, and in late adulthood, anti-LGI1 encephalitis, are the most prevalent autoimmune encephalitis. The most frequently used classifications combine information related to three features: mechanisms of disease (cytotoxic T cell or antibody-mediated mechanisms), type of antigen (intracellular vs cell surface), and presence or absence of a tumour. The detection of a neoplasm frequently serves to categorize the autoimmune encephalitis as paraneoplastic.
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- Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2022
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