Serial single photon emission computed tomography imaging in patients with cerebral lupus during acute exacerbation and after treatment

Review: Neuropsychiatric involvement in pediatric systemic lupus erythematosus

Neuropsychiatric (NP) manifestations are found in approximately 25% of children and adolescents with pediatric SLE (pSLE). In 70% of those, NP involvement will occur within the first year from the time of diagnosis. Headaches (66%), psychosis (36%), cognitive dysfunction (27%) and cerebrovascular disease (24%) are the most common presentations. The support of a psychiatrist is often required. Anti-phospholipid antibodies are associated with distinct NP disease entities and may be implicated in the pathogenesis of several manifestations of NP-pSLE including chorea, cerebrovascular disease and seizures. The role of novel auto-antibodies and imaging modalities is currently explored. The treatment of NP-pSLE is not based on prospective studies; however, an immunosuppressive combination therapy consisting of high doses of prednisone and a second line agent such as cyclophosphamide or azathioprine is commonly suggested for children with NP-pSLE. The role of novel therapies is currently studied. The outcome of children with NP-pSLE is relatively good. The overall survival is 95—97%, 20% of children experience a disease flare during childhood and 25% have evidence of permanent neuropsychiatric damage. Lupus (2007) 16, 564—571.

Elevated cerebral blood flow and volume in systemic lupus measured by dynamic susceptibility contrast magnetic resonance imaging

OBJECTIVE

Studies that have examined abnormalities in cerebral blood flow (CBF) in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) reported CBF relative to a region assumed to be normal in the brain. We examined the absolute differences in both regional CBF and cerebral blood volume (CBV) between patients with SLE and healthy controls.

METHODS

CBF and CBV were measured with dynamic susceptibility contrast (DSC) magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), a technique that provides an alternative to radionuclide perfusion studies and permits quantitative anatomic, CBF, and CBV imaging in a single scanning session. CBF and CBV were measured in lesions and in normal-appearing tissue in the major cerebral and subcortical brain regions. Unlike most perfusion studies in SLE, CBF and CBV values were not normalized to a region of the brain assumed to be healthy.

RESULTS

CBF and CBV within MRI-visible lesions were markedly reduced relative to surrounding normal-appearing white matter. CBF and CBV in normal-appearing tissue were both higher in SLE patient groups, with or without lesions, relative to the control group.

CONCLUSION

DSC MRI, without normalization to a region presumed to be healthy, revealed that CBF and CBV in normal-appearing tissue in patients with SLE was higher than CBF and CBV in controls. Since this finding was made in subgroups of patients with and without lesions, the higher CBF and CBV appear to precede lesion pathology.

Evaluation of cerebral perfusion in patients with neuropsychiatric systemic lupus erythematosus using 123I-IMP SPECT

OBJECTIVE

In the course of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), central nervous system (CNS) complications occur at a high frequency. An accurate diagnosis of CNS lupus, differentiated from secondary CNS involvement, is difficult. CNS lupus is indicative of advancing primary disease and is treated by steroid pulse therapy or increased dosage of steroids. In contrast, if symptoms are caused by secondary CNS complications, it is possible to observe or treat these complications using symptomatic therapy. We examined whether quantitative cerebral blood flow (CBF) measured using cerebral perfusion single photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) can be used to differentiate CNS lupus from secondary CNS involvement.

METHODS

We divided 18 SLE patients with CNS symptoms into a CNS lupus group and a non-CNS lupus group, and then compared the mean cerebral blood flow (mCBF) of each group of patients. SPECT was performed with N-isopropyl-p-[123I] iodoamphetamine (IMP), with quantitation carried out by table look-up and autoradiographic methods.

RESULTS

The mCBF of both groups was decreased; however, the mCBF of patients with CNS lupus was significantly lower than that of non-CNS lupus patients.

CONCLUSION

Quantitative CBF may provide a useful tool to distinguish CNS lupus from non-CNS lupus.

Neurology of systemic autoimmune disorders: a pediatric perspective

Autoimmune disorders can involve patients of any age and organs of any organ system. The central and peripheral nervous systems are frequently among the targets of these diseases. Immune dysfunction often presents in childhood or adolescence. Among the autoimmune disorders that present during childhood and adolescence, systemic lupus erythematosus, dermatomyositis, and Behcet's disease affect the nervous system with some degree of frequency. Furthermore, although juvenile rheumatoid arthritis only rarely affects the nervous system during childhood, it and its adult-onset counterpart may have profound long-term neurological consequences. Both symptomatic and pathophysiologically aimed therapies are important in the treatment of the nervous system sequelae of systemic autoimmune disorders.

Systemic lupus erythematosus and related disorders of childhood

Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) remains a challenging autoimmune disease in term of its etiology, pathogenesis, and management. Much progress has been made in the past year in searching for the SLE susceptibility genes, particularly by several genome-wide screening groups. Cumulative evidence about the association of infections and hormones with SLE has been gathered. Researchers believe that childhood SLE involves more severe organ involvement than adult SLE. Central nervous system complicated lupus continues to be problematic because functional imaging can be abnormal in otherwise asymptomatic lupus individuals. Whether these abnormalities result from subclinical central nervous system involvement or from false positives remains to be determined. With the wide use of corticosteroids as a cornerstone therapy for major organ involvement in childhood SLE, potential complications, especially those involving the growing bone or osteoporosis, are a cause of concern. Evidence suggests that regular exercise, as well as calcium and vitamin D supplementation, may help alleviate bone complications. Researchers have also updated information about pediatric antiphospholipid antibody syndrome. Follow-up studies on neonatal lupus and its pathogenesis have progressed, leading to a better understanding of its natural history and, in turn, to proper counseling of mothers of infants with neonatal lupus and of women with positive anti-Ro or anti-La antibodies. Drug-induced lupus in children is not uncommon. Minocycline and zafirlukast have been increasingly used, and were reported to induce lupus in children.

Childhood cerebral lupus in an Oriental population

In a cross-sectional study of 24 Oriental children with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) with a mean age of 11.25 years, 75% were found to have clinical and neurophysiological evidence of cerebral lupus. Seizures were the most common manifestation affecting 11 (61%) of the cases, followed by psychosis in five (27.7%), encephalopathy in five (27.7%), headaches in five (27.7%), personality changes in four (22.2%), stroke in three (16.6%), movement disorders in three (16.6%) and myelitis in one child (5.5%). Four children had cerebral lupus as the presenting manifestation of SLE. Twenty-one children had an electroencephalogram (EEG) of which 11 were normal. Abnormalities detected in the rest included focal sharps, slowing of background and electrodecremental changes. There was a poor correlation of EEG with the clinical presentation. Sixteen children with cerebral lupus had a computed tomogram (CT) of which three were normal. The commonest abnormality was cerebral atrophy with or without infarcts. Only four of the cases had lupus anticoagulant but compliment was reduced in 13. Sixteen of the cases also had renal involvement. Treatment was generally with steroids with only two patients receiving cyclophosphamide for cerebral relapse. Eight children (44%) made a full recovery. Learning disability was the most frequent sequelae affecting one-third of children seen at a 1-year follow up. Four (22%) had epilepsy, two (11%) had motor deficits and one child had optic atrophy. One child died of cerebral haemorrhage during a hypertensive crisis.

Neurological involvement in systemic lupus erythematosus

The aetiology of neurological involvement in systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) still remains largely uncertain, but there are some recent reports of retrovirus activity linked to human and mouse models of SLE. Antiribosomal P antibodies appear specific to SLE and tend to be associated with psychiatric disease, but not exclusively so. The role of antiphospholipid antibodies in the pathogenesis of SLE may not be solely to cause thrombotic events, but also to act directly on neuronal tissue. The importance of another group of antibodies, those against Beta 2 glycoprotein I, a phospholipid binding protein, is now being recognized. Amongst the many neurological manifestations of SLE, cognitive impairment is becoming increasingly recognized and appears not to be simply a response to chronic disease or its treatment. Of the newer imaging techniques applied to SLE, positron emission tomography has proved inconsistent and somewhat disappointing but single photon emission computed tomography in active disease appears more sensitive compared to MRI, although it still remains a nonspecific technique. The treatment of SLE remains disappointing and no controlled trials for neurological disease have been published to date but a number of experimental approaches do offer hope for the future.