Tickborne Encephalitis in an Area of High Endemicity in Lithuania: Disease Severity and Long‐Term Prognosis
Top Cited Papers
Open Access
- 15 September 2002
- journal article
- Published by Oxford University Press (OUP) in Clinical Infectious Diseases
- Vol. 35 (6), 650-658
- https://doi.org/10.1086/342059
Abstract
Of 250 consecutively admitted patients with central nervous system (CNS) infections who were treated during a 1-year period, all 133 patients with tickborne encephalitis (TBE) were included in a prospective follow-up study. TBE presented as mild (meningeal) in 43.6% of patients and as moderate or severe (encephalitic) in 43.6% and 12.8% of patients, respectively. Paralytic disease was observed in 3.8% of the subjects, and cranial nerve injury was observed in 5.3%. One patient died of TBE. Permanent CNS dysfunction after 1 year was found in 30.8% of patients; in 8.5% of all TBE cases, severe disabilities required adjustment of daily activities. Corticosteroid treatment did not seem to improve outcome. A progressive course of TBE was noted in 2 patients. The risk of incomplete recovery was significantly higher among patients with the encephalitic form of TBE (odds ratio, 4.066; 95% confidence interval, 1.848–8.947). In conclusion, TBE is an important pathogen in CNS infection in the Kaunas region of Lithuania, and it causes long-lasting morbidity in one-third of cases.Keywords
This publication has 16 references indexed in Scilit:
- Tick-borne Encephalitis Virus in LithuaniaEuropean Journal of Clinical Microbiology & Infectious Diseases, 2001
- The clinical and epidemiological profile of tick-borne encephalitis in southern Germany 1994–98Brain, 1999
- Tick‐Borne EncephalitisClinical Infectious Diseases, 1999
- Intrathecal IgM, IgA and IgG antibody response in tick-borne encephalitis. Long-term follow-up related to clinical course and outcomeClinical and Diagnostic Virology, 1997
- A 10-Year Follow-Up Study of Tick-Borne Encephalitis in the Stockholm Area and a Review of the Literature: Need for a Vaccination StrategyScandinavian Journal of Infectious Diseases, 1996
- The molecular biology of tick-borne encephalitis virusAPMIS, 1993
- Tick‐borne viral encephalitis in Finland. The clinical features of Kumlinge disease during 1959–1987Journal of Internal Medicine, 1989
- Pneumococcal meningitis: An evaluation of prognostic factors in 164 cases based on mortality and on a study of lasting sequelaeJournal of Infection, 1985
- Mitteleuropäische Zeckenenzephalitis in den Jahren 1969–1972 im Kreis MittelböhmenInfection, 1975
- Tick‐borne Meningoencephalomyelitis in SwedenActa Medica Scandinavica, 1959