Symptoms
The symptoms of encephalitis can be milder or more severe, depending on the pathogen, and can thus have a strong influence on the therapy and course of the disease. In contrast to meningitis, encephalitis can generally be expected to have a milder course if the symptoms are recognized and treated quickly. In the beginning, the inflammation can produce cold signs and the patient notices fever and chills.
As a result, patients often complain of increasing headaches, loss of consciousness, neurological and psychotic symptoms. The disturbances of consciousness can range from lack of concentration to severe fatigue and even fainting. How the neurological-psychotic symptoms finally manifest themselves is strongly influenced by which areas of the brain are affected by the inflammation.
For example, if the frontal lobe (the front part of the brain) is affected, it is possible that personality changes occur. Up to this point of the disease, with effective treatment, the previous state can almost always be reached and the disease completely cured. If the physical condition worsens or if therapy is neglected, brain swelling (cerebral edema) or cerebral hemorrhaging (cerebral hemorrhage) may occur and cause permanent brain damage.
Some pathogens cause a particular symptomatology that produces a specific clinical picture:
- Herpes simplex virus I: Several centres of inflammation form in the brain (herd encephalitis).As a result, speech disorders, olfactory disorders, epileptic seizures and disturbances of consciousness develop, which can even lead to coma.
- HIV: Immune cells attacked by the virus infect brain cells and thus cause the destruction of the brain. The neurological symptoms of AIDS are memory disorders, listlessness and fine motor skills disorders. Movement and sensation can also be restricted.
Brain nerve failures are regularly observed. About one fifth of patients develop AIDS dementia, which is associated with the HI virus. In addition, AIDS patients can frequently suffer from opportunistic infections (infections that occur only because of a poor immune system) with a wide variety of pathogens.
- Rabies virus (Rhabdovirus): After the bite of a rabies-infected animal, sensory disturbances develop in the area of the bite site.
A special feature of a rabies infection is the very aggressive behavior, which gave the disease its name.
- Spirochetes: The symptoms of neurosyphillis (Treponema pallidum) and neuroborreliosis (Borellia burgdorferii) are also very prominent.
Most patients suffering from encephalitis will recover with appropriate therapy and will not suffer any serious damage. Nevertheless, late effects of encephalitis are possible, especially if the disease has not been treated in time. The most common late effects include headaches, concentration problems and prolonged exhaustion.
Other late effects may include severe neurological deficits, cognitive impairment and epileptic seizures. In addition, there may be behavioural problems and changes in character. The late effects are not always so drastic; some long-term brain damage can also be relatively mild and is often not noticed.
In general, it is important that encephalitis is diagnosed quickly and treated immediately, because the longer the disease remains untreated, the greater the risk that the patient will suffer long-term damage to the brain. The duration of encephalitis can vary greatly and depends on the individual course of the disease and the type of pathogen. Another important factor that significantly influences the duration of encephalitis is the time until treatment begins.
Some inflammations are very mild and last only a few days, in other cases it takes months until the disease is completely cured. Those affected can retain permanent damage to the nervous system. In severe cases or if encephalitis is not diagnosed and treated in time, the disease is fatal.
