An Atypical Long-Term Thiamine Treatment Regimen for Wernicke Encephalopathy
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ABSTRACT:
SUBMITTER: Shoaib S
PROVIDER: S-EPMC7535953 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Sep
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature
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Project description:Non-encephalopathic presentations of CNS thiamine deficiency may be difficult to diagnose. We describe neuro-otologic findings of Wernicke syndrome in 5 patients with vestibular manifestations. Diagnosis was confirmed by low serum levels, response to replacement, and brain MRI to exclude other causes. All had bilaterally abnormal horizontal head impulse vestibulo-ocular reflex (VOR) responses and pathologic gaze-evoked nystagmus, without encephalopathy. After thiamine replacement, 4 had total resolution of vestibular and oculomotor findings. Novel findings included 2 patients whose VOR function improved within minutes of IV repletion and 1 whose recovery was documented by serial quantitative recordings. Early diagnosis of Wernicke by examining vestibular reflexes and prompt IV treatment might prevent encephalopathy and other neurologic or systemic complications of thiamine depletion.
| S-EPMC6082353 | biostudies-literature
Project description:BackgroundWernicke-Korsakoff Syndrome (WKS) is a neuropsychiatric syndrome caused by thiamine deficiency. Cancer predisposes to thiamine deficiency through various mechanisms. Although many case reports exist on nonalcoholic WKS in cancer, larger qualitative studies are lacking.MethodRetrospective study of patients admitted to a cancer hospital and diagnosed with WKS during routine care on a psychiatric consultation service. Only patients with at least 1 additional supporting feature (magnetic resonance imaging findings, low serum thiamine concentrations, or response to treatment) were included. Data pertaining to demographics, risk factors, phenomenology, and outcomes were abstracted from medical records by chart review.ResultsIn all, 18 patients were included. All patients developed WKS during cancer treatment. Hematologic malignancy, gastrointestinal tract tumors, low oral intake, and weight loss were common risk factors. All patients presented with cognitive dysfunction, most commonly impaired alertness, attention, and short-term memory. All were diagnosed by operational criteria proposed by Caine et al., 1997 (where 2 of the following are required: nutritional deficiency, ocular signs, cerebellar signs, and either altered mental status or mild memory impairment). Few exhibited Wernicke's classic triad. Diagnostic and treatment delay were common. Only 3 patients recovered fully.ConclusionNonalcoholic WKS can occur during cancer treatment and manifests clinically as delirium. Diagnosis should be made using operational criteria, not Wernicke's triad. Most patients were not underweight and had normal serum concentration of vitamin B12 and folate. A variety of mechanisms might predispose to thiamine deficiency and WKS in cancer. Given the high frequency of residual morbidity, studies should focus on decreasing diagnostic and treatment delay.
| S-EPMC4979979 | biostudies-literature
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| S-EPMC4016094 | biostudies-literature
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| S-EPMC7590192 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Myotonic dystrophy type 1, also known as Steinert's disease, is an autosomal dominant disorder with multisystemic clinical features affecting the skeletal and cardiac muscles, the eyes, and the endocrine system. Thiamine (vitamin B1) is a cofactor of fundamental enzymes involved in the energetic cell metabolism; recent studies described its role in oxidative stress, protein processing, peroxisomal function, and gene expression. Thiamine deficiency is critical mainly in the central and peripheral nervous system, as well as in the muscular cells. Our aim was to investigate the potential therapeutical effects of long-term treatment with thiamine in myotonic dystrophy type 1 in an observational open-label pilot study. We described two patients with myotonic dystrophy type 1 treated with intramuscular thiamine 100 mg twice a week for 12 or 11 months. We evaluated the patients using the grading of muscle strength according to Medical Research Council (MRC), the Muscular Impairment Rating Scale (MIRS), and the Modified Barthel index. High-dose thiamine treatment was well tolerated and effective in improving the motor symptomatology, particularly the muscle strength evaluated with the MRC scale, and the patients' activities of daily living using the Modified Barthel Index. At the end of treatment, the MRC score was 5 in the proximal muscles and 2-4 in the distal muscles (the MRC score before the treatment was 3-4 and 1-3, respectively). The MIRS grade improved by 25% compared to baseline for both patients. In patient #1, the Modified Barthel Index improved by 44%, and in patient #2 by 29%. These findings suggest that clinical outcomes are improved by long-term thiamine treatment.
| S-EPMC5090854 | biostudies-literature
Project description: Not available
| S-EPMC4386433 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Background and objectivesLesions of the cerebellar flocculus cause enduring downbeat nystagmus (DBN) with unrelenting oscillopsia. Unlike most patients with DBN, the flocculus is structurally spared in nonalcoholic Wernicke encephalopathy (nWE) with chronic DBN. The objective was to study the effects of alcohol in nWE.MethodsWe recorded eye movements of a unique patient with nWE under controlled alcohol consumption who said his oscillopsia disappeared with a few drinks of alcohol.ResultsHis DBN was markedly diminished by alcohol (by 77.4%), although he remained alert with normal saccades.DiscussionThis striking observation may be caused by the differential effect of alcohol on the perihypoglossal complex and the paramedian tract neurons, which control the level of activity in the flocculus, with opposite (inhibition and excitation, respectively) effects. The finding suggests new ideas about the treatment and pathophysiology of DBN with a structurally intact cerebellum.
| S-EPMC9647809 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) is an immune triggered process leading to severe immune dysregulation and organ dysfunction until death and it is one of the worst medical complications after a transplant. Patients with GVHD may have several neurological alterations: during this acute severe phase there is coexistence of various and nonspecific neurological symptoms. We are reporting a case of a 53 year old woman with severe GVHD after bone marrow transplant with acute neurological signs and symptoms. MRI study showed findings consistent with Posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome and Wernicke encephalopathy.
| S-EPMC6545363 | biostudies-literature
Project description:Wernicke encephalopathy (WE) is an acute life-threatening neurological condition caused by thiamine (vitamin B1) deficiency. Patients with WE often present with a triad of symptoms consisting of ophthalmoplegia, gait ataxia, and mental confusion. If WE is not treated in a timely manner, it can lead to serious complications such as confusion, coma, or death. Although alcohol abuse is the most commonly reported cause of WE, nonalcoholic causes-although rare-do exist. Herein, we present the case of a nonalcoholic woman with medullary infarctions who presented with intractable vomiting. Her clinical state subsequently progressed to include ophthalmoplegia and gait ataxia. A diagnosis of WE was suspected based on her clinical presentation; this was confirmed by brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and the finding of decreased serum thiamine levels. Brain magnetic resonance imaging demonstrated the complete resolution of abnormal hyperintensities during a follow-up visit, 6 months after treatment.
| S-EPMC11375649 | biostudies-literature
Project description:To determine the prevalence of the Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome (WKS) in Australia and compare this with previous studies.Prospective autopsy study at the New South Wales Institute of Forensic Medicine, 1996-1997.Brains of deceased people (aged over 15 years) derived from 2212 sequential autopsies performed between 1 January 1996 and 31 December 1997 were studied macroscopically and microscopically to identify cases of WKS.Standard histological criteria for WKS and any available clinical data.Twenty-five cases of WKS were identified (prevalence, 1.1%), mostly among the 5.9% of the 2212 people who had a history suggestive of alcohol abuse. Only four cases (16%) had been diagnosed during life.There has been a significant reduction in the prevalence of WKS in Australia since the introduction of thiamine enrichment of bread flour. While the prevalence is still higher than in most other Western countries, further research is needed before adding thiamine to alcoholic beverages can be recommended.
| S-EPMC3391549 | biostudies-other