Soto V Alvaro, Cartier R Luis
Departamento de Ciencias Neurológicas Oriente, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de Chile, Santiago, Chile.
Rev Med Chil. 2011 Oct;139(10):1340-3. Epub 2012 Jan 3.
Adverse reactions to intravenous immunoglobulin (ivIg) therapy, such as anaphylaxis, acute encephalopathy, aseptic meningitis, or thrombotic phenomena are uncommon. We report a 58-year-old man with hypertension presenting with muscle weakness which led to paraparesia and respiratory failure. With the diagnosis of Guillain-Barré syndrome (GBS), he was treated with ivIg. He developed an acute encephalopathy few hours after the administration of ivIg, with a decreased level of consciousness and agitation. A CT scan revealed moderate and diffuse brain edema. Encephalopathy resolved 96 hours after ivIg withdrawal and use of plasma exchange. A CT scan performed seven days after showed the resolution of brain edema.