TITLE:
Concomitant H1N1 encephalopathy and acute ischemic stroke: A case report
AUTHORS:
Elzbieta Wirkowski, Jay Yasen, Christopher Bondoc
KEYWORDS:
Stroke; Infection
JOURNAL NAME:
World Journal of Cardiovascular Diseases,
Vol.2 No.2,
April
25,
2012
ABSTRACT: Neurological complications of infection by the novel H1N1 virus have been described primarily in children. In adults, patients typically present with fever and respiratory symptoms, and may develop acute respi-ratory distress syndrome, sepsis and stroke. We present a 45-year-old man whose presentation of aphasia and right hemiplegia were incongruent with the findings on MRI of a small acute ischemic stroke. He rapidly developed multi-organ failure and died. Nasal swab PCR obtained prior to death returned positive for influenza virus A/H1N1. At autopsy, a small acute hemorrhagic infarction in the left parietal lobe was present. We suspect that this was a car-dio-embolic stroke, probably triggered by H1N1 myocarditis.