Increased rates of sequelae post-encephalitis in individuals attending primary care practices in the United Kingdom: a population-based retrospective cohort study

This study aimed to quantify increased risks of epilepsy, depressive disorders, anxiety disorders, psychotic disorders, bipolar disorder, cognitive problems, dementia, headache, and alcohol abuse among encephalitis cases. 2460 exposed individuals diagnosed with incident encephalitis in the Clinical Practice Research Datalink and 47,914 unexposed individuals without a history of encephalitis were included. Multivariable Poisson regression was used to estimate adjusted rate ratios in individuals with encephalitis compared to the general population and to estimate whether the effect of these outcomes varied over time. Individuals with encephalitis had an increased risk of all investigated outcomes. The highest RR was seen for epilepsy (adjusted RR 31.9; 95  % confidence interval 25.38–40.08), whereas the lowest was seen for anxiety disorders (1.46, 1.27–1.68). The second highest RRs were for particular psychiatric illnesses, including bipolar disorder (6.34, 3.34–12.04) and psychotic disorders (3.48, 2.18–5.57). The RR was highest in the firs t year of follow-up for all outcomes except headache; this was particularly true for epilepsy (adjusted RR in first year of follow-up 139.6, 90.62–215.03). This study shows that sequelae are common in survivors of encephalitis. We confirm the presence of outcomes more commonly linked to encephalit is and describe those less commonly identified as being associated with encephalitis. The results of this study have important implica...
Source: Journal of Neurology - Category: Neurology Source Type: research