Zusammenfassung
Autoimmune encephalitis can be caused by autoimmune reactions against extracellular proteins expressed on nerve cells or against intracellular or/and nuclear localised proteins. Up to now about 20 different autoantigens have been described that can be the target structures for the adaptive immune response (T cells, B cells, auto-antibodies). Some of the autoimmune encephalitis forms can have a ...
Zusammenfassung
Autoimmune encephalitis can be caused by autoimmune reactions against extracellular proteins expressed on nerve cells or against intracellular or/and nuclear localised proteins. Up to now about 20 different autoantigens have been described that can be the target structures for the adaptive immune response (T cells, B cells, auto-antibodies). Some of the autoimmune encephalitis forms can have a paraneoplastic origin. The diagnosis is often difficult because the symptoms can arise from multiple cerebral functional systems and can imitate those of classic psychiatric diseases so that the diagnostic effort and cost can be high. The therapeutic approach depends on the underlying immunological pathomechanisms and in the case of paraneoplastic forms, therapy for the underlying malignancy is mandatory.