Very Long-Term Functional Outcomes and Dependency in Children With Anti-NMDA Receptor Encephalitis
Li‐Wen Chen, Gemma Olivé-Cirera, Elianet Fonseca, Mateus Mistieri Simabukuro, Takahiro Iizuka, Thaís Armangué, Josep Dalmau, for the Pediatric Encephalitis Study Group
Abstract
OBJECTIVES: To assess the daily function of children with anti-N-methyl-d-aspartate receptor encephalitis (NMDARe) after a minimal follow-up of 5 years. METHODS: Patients 18 years and younger by the time of disease onset, whose serum and CSF were studied in our center between 2013 and 2017, were included in the study. Patients' daily life function was assessed by their physicians using a 15-domain question format (Liverpool Outcome Score). RESULTS: = 0.04), particularly in children younger than 6 years, among whom 8 of 23 (35%) remained sociofamiliar dependent. DISCUSSION: After a minimal follow-up of 5 years, most children with NMDARe had substantial or full functional recovery, but approximately one-fifth remained with behavioral and school/working deficits. The younger the patient at disease onset, the more probable it was to remain with multidomain deficits and dependent on sociofamiliar support.