Anti-NMDA receptor encephalitis
Overview
A form of encephalitis that occurs when the immune system attacks NMDA receptors in the brain, resulting in brain swelling and disruption of signaling pathways.
Common Symptoms
Confusion, hallucinations, delusional thinking, disinhibited behaviors, speech dysfunction, memory deficits, seizures, movement disorders, autonomic dysfunction, sleep disorders, and flu-like symptoms.
Coexisting Diseases and Conditions
Researchers have identified scleroderma, multiple sclerosis, Sjögren’s syndrome, rheumatoid arthritis, and Hashimoto’s thyroiditis as coexisting conditions.
Risk Factors and Prevalence
Females are 4 times more affected than males. The typical age of onset is between 25 and 35 years old. Tumors, usually teratoma found in the ovaries, trigger the disease.
Recent Research
- A systematic review and quantitative synthesis of the long-term psychiatric sequelae of pediatric autoimmune encephalitis (2022)
- COVID-19, Anti-NMDA Receptor Encephalitis and MicroRNA (2022)
- Clinical Characteristics of Anti- N-Methyl-d-Aspartate Receptor Encephalitis Overlapping with Demyelinating Diseases: A Review (2022)
- Anti-NMDA Receptor Autoimmune Encephalitis: Diagnosis and Management Strategies (2023)
Sources
- Article Sources
The Anti-NMDA Receptor Encephalitis Foundation Inc. (2018, July 3). What is Anti-nmda Receptor Encephalitis? The Anti NMDA Receptor Encephalitis Foundation . https://www.antinmdafoundation.org/the-illness/what-is-anti-nmda-receptor-encephalitis/.
The Trustees of the University of Pennsylvania . (n.d.). Center for Autoimmune Neurology. Anti-NMDAR Encephalitis | Center for Autoimmune Neurology | Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. https://www.med.upenn.edu/autoimmuneneurology/nmdar-encephalitis.html.
Dalmau, J., Armangué, T., Planagumà, J., Radosevic, M., Mannara, F., Leypoldt, F., Geis, C., Lancaster, E., Titulaer, M. J., Rosenfeld, M. R., & Graus, F. (2019). An update on anti-NMDA receptor encephalitis for neurologists and psychiatrists: mechanisms and models. The Lancet. Neurology, 18(11), 1045–1057. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1474-4422(19)30244-3