Posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome (PRES): A case report

Abstract

Patients with preeclampsia or eclampsia may be associated with hypertension, seizures and other neurologic symptoms and deficits. A young female patient presented with a neurological and visual disturbance which included variable symptoms like visual disturbances, headache, seizures and altered consciousness or mental status with a history of postpartum eclampsia after an uneventful LUCS. She also gave a history of a two-bag blood transfusion one month ago. A neurological and ophthalmic evaluation was performed. Detailed history taking and clinical evaluation followed by an imaging study, potentially magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), helped to confirm the diagnosis of Posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome (PRES). PRES is a clinico-neuroradiological disorder of neurotoxicity that typically involves headache, mental confusion, seizures, and occasionally loss of vision. The exact pathophysiology of PRES is still unclear and has not been thoroughly explained. Hypertension and endothelial cell injury may be pathognomic. Prompt management may help to recover early.