Porphyria: What Is It and Who Should Be Evaluated?

Understanding Hepatic Porphyrias: Symptoms, Treatments, and Unmet Needs

Hepatic porphyrias are a group of metabolic disorders that are characterized by overproduction and accumulation of porphyrin precursors in the liver. These porphyrins cause neurologic symptoms as well as cutaneous photosensitivity, and in some cases patients can experience life-threatening acute neurovisceral attacks. This review describes the acute hepatic porphyrias in detail, including acute intermittent porphyria, hereditary coproporphyria, and variegate porphyria, as well as the hepatic porphyrias with cutaneous manifestations such as porphyria cutanea tarda and hepatoerythropoietic porphyria. Each section will cover disease prevalence, clinical manifestations, and current therapies, including strategies to manage symptoms. Finally, we review new and emerging treatment modalities, including gene therapy through use of adeno-associated vectors and chaperone therapies such as lipid nanoparticle and small interfering RNA-based therapeutics.

A case report of acute intermittent porphyria leading to severe disability

Acute intermittent porphyria (AIP) is a rare inherited metabolic disorder resulting from increased production of porphyrins and their precursors, δ-aminolevulinic acid (ALA) and porphobilinogen (PBG), due to deficiencies in the enzymatic activity of the heme synthesis pathway. The disease is typically characterized by a triad of abdominal pain, neurologic impairment symptoms, and psychiatric abnormalities. However, only a small percentage of patients present with this classic triad of symptoms. Our female patient, aged 23, was admitted to the hospital with a 4-year history of abnormal mood episodes and weakness in the limbs for over 1 week. She had a previous medical history of intestinal obstruction. After admission, a cranial MRI revealed reversible posterior leukoencephalopathy imaging manifestations, and the patient exhibited weakness of the extremities, respiratory failure, seizures, and severely reduced serum sodium concentration. The diagnosis of AIP was ultimately confirmed by a positive urine PBG-sunlight test and analysis of HMBS gene variants. The absence of typical triadic signs in acute attacks of AIP can make early recognition of the disease challenging. We present a case with multiple typical clinical manifestations of AIP in the hope of aiding clinicians in fully recognizing acute intermittent porphyria.

Death of a medical colossus: The course, cause and fatal outcome of Avicenna's colic

Abu-'Ali al-Husayn ibn Abdallah ibn-Sina (known in the West as Avicenna) is revered in much of Asia as one of history's greatest physicians. And yet, few westerners know of him, his iconic Canon of Medicine or the role he played in preserving ancient Greek medical knowledge following the sack of Rome. We briefly review Avicenna's impressive legacy and provide what to our knowledge is the first critical examination of the illness responsible for his death at age 58 years.

A 25-Hour Fast Among Quiescent Hereditary Coproporphyria and Variegate Porphyria Patients is Associated With a Low Risk of Complications

OBJECTIVE

In patients with acute hepatic porphyria (AHP), prolonged fasting is a known trigger of AHP attacks. Despite this, some Jewish AHP patients-mainly hereditary coproporphyria (HCP) and variegate porphyria (VP) patients-fast for 25 consecutive hours during the traditional Jewish holy day known as Yom Kippur. In this study, we evaluated the effect of the fast on these patients.

METHODS

A retrospective study and survey of AHP patients in Israel was carried out. Patients were asked whether they have fasted and whether any symptoms were induced by this fast. Patients' medical records were reviewed for an emergency department (ED) visit following Yom Kippur between 2007 and 2019. Only 3 acute intermittent porphyria (AIP) patients reported fasting; they were excluded from analysis.

RESULTS

A total of 21 HCP patients and 40 VP patients completed the survey; 30 quiescent patients reported they fast, while 31 did not fast. The majority of fasting patients (96.67%) reported no symptoms following a fast. We found no statistically significant association between ED visits 1 week (0.26% in both fasting and non-fasting patients) or 1 month (2.1% visits in non-fasting versus 0.78% in fasting patients) following Yom Kippur. Of the symptomatic ED visits following a fast, none were defined as severe attacks.

CONCLUSION

A 25-hour fast in stable HCP and VP patients did not increase the risk of an acute attack and can probably be regarded as safe.

Porphyria: a case report

BACKGROUND

Prompt diagnosis of metabolic disorders in a resource-limited country like Nepal is daunting. Acute intermittent porphyria is a rare but common hepatic porphyria mostly seen in females of the reproductive age group. As its incidence is quite uncommon, conjectures about porphyria diagnosis are often duped into a diagnostic conundrum.

CASE PRESENTATION

Here we unravel a case of a 15-year-old Hindu Nepalese girl distraught by the myriad of symptoms in the setting of severe abdominal pain accompanied by constipation and limb pain as the chief complaints. She presented with acute severe hypertension with marked persistent hyponatremia (up to 109 mEq/L). Despite conservative management of hypertension and electrolytes, unresolved electrolyte imbalance led us to the speculation of disturbance in the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system. Due to her exacerbating neurovisceral status, she also required intensive care during the disease course. After thorough investigations and exemption of presumed provisional diagnoses, based on sustained symptomatic presentation, the clinical suspicion was driven towards a diagnosis of porphyria-related disorders. Positive Watson-Schwartz test substantiated the diagnosis of acute intermittent porphyria. Her symptoms gradually abated after the consumption of high carbohydrate diets.

CONCLUSION

This case highlights the baffling amalgamation of symptoms that simulate common diseases of concern yet are buried in the realm of porphyric disorders. Porphyria can be diagnosed using simple screening tools and timely treatment can diminish serious consequences.

Plasma porphyrins among end stage renal disease patients and cutaneous symptoms- is there still an association?

Introduction

Several abnormalities of porphyrin metabolism leading to Porphyria Cutanea Tarda (PCT) have been described in early studies of End Stage Renal Disease (ESRD) patients, with a reported prevalence of 5-18%. We aimed to evaluate porphyrin levels and correlation to skin manifestations in modern dialysis era.

Methods

The study cohort included adult hemodialysis patients from a single center tertiary medical center. All patients underwent a full skin examination, completed the Dermatology Life Quality Index questioner, and provided a blood sample for porphyrin levels assessment.

Results

A total of 94 adult hemodialysis patients were recruited to the study. No clinical PCT was diagnosed. Porphyrin levels did not correlate with any clinical or dialysis quality parameters.

Conclusions

In modern hemodialysis era, possibly due to improved porphyrins' metabolism and dialysis removal, PCT is much less prevalent among hemodialysis patients than previously reported in the past.

Psychological Aspect and Quality of Life in Porphyrias: A Review

The World Health Organization (WHO) describes “health” as a state of physical, mental, and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity. Therefore, a biopsychosocial approach should be considered as an integral part of patients’ management. In this review, we summarize the available data starting from 1986 on the biological, psychological, and social aspects of porphyrias in order to provide a useful tool for clinicians about the missing knowledge within this field. Porphyrias are a group of rare metabolic disorders affecting the heme biosynthetic pathway and can be categorized into hepatic and erythropoietic. Here, a total of 20 articles reporting the psychological and the quality of life (QoL) data of porphyria patients affected by acute hepatic porphyrias (AHPs), Porphyria Cutanea Tarda (PCT), and Erythropoietic Protoporphyria (EPP) were analyzed. These 13 articles include reported quantitative methods using questionnaires, while the reaming articles employed qualitative descriptive approaches through direct interviews with patients by psychology professionals. We conclude that the use of questionnaires limits the complete description of all areas of a patient’s life compared to a direct interview with specialists. However, only a combined use of these methods could be the best approach for the correct disorder management.

Multi-omics analysis reveals metabolism of okadaic acid in gut lumen of rat

Okadaic acid (OA) is an important marine lipophilic phycotoxin with various pathological properties, responsible for diarrheal shellfish poisoning events in human beings over the world. However, to date no mechanism can well explain the toxicity and symptom of OA, even diarrhea. Here, to reveal the toxic mechanism of OA to mammals, we analyzed the metabolism of OA in rat and the effects of OA exposure on the composition and function of gut bacteria using a multi-omics strategy and rRNA high-throughput technology. We found that OA exerted great effects on gut bacteria, mainly featured in heavy fluctuation of dominant genera and significant changes in the mapped bacterial function genes, including not only virulence genes of pathogenic bacteria, but also bacterial metabolism genes. In the feces of the OA-exposed group, we detected dinophysistoxin-2 (DTX-2), lespedezaflavanone F and tolytoxin, suggesting that OA could be transformed into other metabolites like DTX-2. Other metabolic biomarkers such as N-Acetyl-a-neuraminic acid, N,N-dihydroxy-L-tyrosine, nalbuphine, and coproporphyrin I and III were also highly correlated with OA content, which made the toxicity of OA more complicated and confusing. Spearman correlation test demonstrated that Bacteroides and Romboutsia were the genera most related to OA transformation, suggesting that Bacteroides and Romboutsia might play a key role in the complicated and confusing toxicity of OA. In this study, we found for the first time that OA may be converted into other metabolites in gut, especially DTX-2. This finding could not only help to reveal the complex toxicity of OA, but also have important significance for clarifying the transportation, metabolism, and environmental fate of OA in the food chain.

Syndrome of Inappropriate Antidiuretic Hormone Secretion in a Patient with Uncontrolled Tyrosinaemia Type 1

Syndrome of inappropriate antidiuretic hormone (SIADH) secretion is a recognisable complication of acute porphyria. We report a nine-year-old female patient with hereditary tyrosinaemia type 1 and poor adherence to nitisinone therapy who presented with acute abdominal pain, vomiting and lethargy at Sultan Qaboos University Hospital, Muscat, Oman in 2016. She subsequently developed generalised tonic-clonic seizures attributable to severe hyponatremia that met the diagnostic criteria of SIADH. The acute porphyria screen also appeared positive. The patient responded well to fluid restriction and was discharged home without immediate neurological sequelae. Although acute porphyria is also a recognised complication of uncontrolled tyrosinaemia type 1, to the best of the authors' knowledge, no patient with tyrosinaemia type 1 has been reported to present with SIADH.

Clinical features of genetic cutaneous porphyrias in Israel: A nationwide survey

BACKGROUND

There are three major types of genetic cutaneous porphyrias (GCP): erythropoietic protoporphyria (EPP), variegate porphyria (VP), and hereditary coproporphyria (HCP). Scarce data are available regarding their impact on patients' quality of life in the Mediterranean region.

PURPOSE

To describe the cutaneous features of GCP in Israel.

METHODS

An established nationwide cohort of patients with GCP diagnosed during 1988-2019 was surveyed by telephone for cutaneous features of GCP. Impact on quality of life was assessed using the Dermatology Life Quality Index.

RESULTS

Of the 95 patients with GCP, 71 (75%) completed the survey (21 HCP; 40 VP; 10 EPP). All EPP patients reported cutaneous symptoms compared with 58% of VP and 5% of HCP (P < .001). Mean age at symptom onset was 7 ± 6 years in EPP and 25 ± 15 years in VP (P < .001). Photosensitivity was the most common symptom in EPP (90%). In VP photosensitivity (52%), blistering (52%) and scarring (74%) were all common symptoms. In both VP and EPP, the dorsal hands/forearms were the most affected regions (≥96%), and in ≥ 78%, symptoms occurred on an almost daily basis. All EPP patients changed their lifestyle due to cutaneous symptoms vs 57% in VP. Major effect on quality of life was observed among EPP patients compared with a moderate effect in VP. No treatment was effective in EPP, while phototherapy and moisturizers were effective in 5 of 7 (71%) VP patients.

CONCLUSION

This study sheds light on the cutaneous features of the GCP, which have a substantial effect on patients' quality of life.

Greater disease burden of variegate porphyria than hereditary coproporphyria: An Israeli nationwide study of neurocutaneous porphyrias

Hereditary coproporphyria (HCP) and variegate porphyria (VP) are referred to as neurocutaneous porphyrias (NCP). Data concerning their systemic presentation are limited and no direct attempt of comparison of the two has ever been made. Our aim was to describe the type and frequency of systemic manifestations of NCPs in Israeli patients. A cross-sectional survey was conducted. The study population included all patients with NCP diagnosed at the Israeli National Service for Biochemical Diagnoses of Porphyrias (INSP) between 1988 and 2019. Of the 83 patients with NCP who were alive in 2019, 61 (73%) completed the survey, 40 with VP and 21 with HCP. Systemic symptoms were reported by 63% of the VP group and 62% of the HCP group (p = .96); corresponding rates of cutaneous symptoms were 58% and 5% (p < .001). We found no association between the occurrence of systemic and cutaneous symptoms. Among patients with systemic involvement, abdominal pain was the predominant systemic symptom, found in 64% of the VP group and 69% of the HCP group; Analysis of symptom frequency showed that in 68% of the VP group, systemic symptoms (either abdominal, musculoskeletal or neuropsychiatric) occurred on a daily/weekly basis, whereas the HCP group experienced less than one symptom per week (p < .001). This nationwide study depicts a significantly heavier disease burden in VP patients compared to HCP owing to its more frequent neurovisceral and cutaneous manifestations.

The clinical importance of early acute hepatic porphyria diagnosis: a national cohort

Acute hepatic porphyria (AHP) attacks begin with abdominal pain and can progress to severe life-threatening conditions. Early diagnosis and treatment may prevent these complications. We investigated the difference between the severity of porphyria attacks before and after porphyria diagnosis. A retrospective study including AHP patients hospitalized for an acute attack in Israel during a 15-year period. Diagnosis of an attack was based on typical clinical symptoms accompanied by at least one documented elevated urinary porphobilinogen above fourfold of normal values. The primary outcome was intensive care unit (ICU) admissions. Secondary outcomes included the length of hospital stay, severe hyponatremia, seizures, and psychiatric symptoms. 42 attacks in 9 patients were included. Most attacks occurred in women (78.6%) and in acute intermittent porphyria patients (76.2%). The mean age of attack was 26.5 (± 6.3) years. Attacks following porphyria diagnosis had a lower prevalence of ICU admission (3.3% versus 75.0%, p < 0.001), seizures (0% versus 50.0%, p < 0.001), psychiatric symptoms (23.3% versus 66.7%, p = 0.01), severe hyponatremia (16.7% versus 83.3%, p < 0.001), and median length of hospital stay (5 versus 11.0 days, p < 0.001). These results remained significant after simple univariate logistic regression for ICU admission [odds ratio (OR) 0.01, 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.00-0.12], prolonged hospital stay (OR 0.08, 95% CI 0.01-0.41), seizures or neurological symptoms (OR 0.06, 95% CI 0.01-0.30), and severe hyponatremia (OR 0.02, 95% CI 0.00-0.20). Previously diagnosed AHP patients have a significantly milder attack course as compared to previously undiagnosed patients. Family screening following sentinel cases might prevent severe AHP attacks.

Orphan Peripheral Neuropathies

Objectives:

Generally, neuropathies of peripheral nerves are a frequent condition (prevalence 2–3%) and most frequently due to alcoholism, diabetes, renal insufficiency, malignancy, toxins, or drugs. However, the vast majority of neuropathies has orphan status. This review focuses on the etiology, frequency, diagnosis, and treatment of orphan neuropathies.

Methods:

Literature review

Results:

Rareness of diseases is not uniformly defined but in the US an orphan disease is diagnosed if the prevalence is <1:200000, in Europe if <5:10000. Most acquired and hereditary neuropathies are orphan diseases. Often the causative variant has been reported only in a single patient or family, particularly the ones that are newly detected (e.g. SEPT9, SORD). Among the complex neuropathies (hereditary multisystem disorders with concomitant neuropathies) orphan forms have been reported among mitochondrial disorders (e.g. NARP, MNGIE, SANDO), spinocerebellar ataxias (e.g. TMEM240), hereditary spastic paraplegias (e.g UBAP1), lysosomal storage disease (e.g. Schindler disease), peroxisomal disorders, porphyrias, and other types (e.g. giant axonal neuropathy, Tangier disease). Orphan acquired neuropathies include the metabolic neuropathies (e.g. vitamin-B1, folic acid), toxic neuropathies (e.g. copper, lithium, lead, arsenic, thallium, mercury), infectious neuropathies, immune-mediated (e.g. Bruns-Garland syndrome), and neoplastic/paraneoplastic neuropathies.

Conclusions:

Though orphan neuropathies are rare per definition they constitute the majority of neuropathies and should be considered as some of them are easy to identify and potentially treatable, as clarification of the underlying cause may contribute to the knowledge about etiology and pathophysiology of these conditions, and as the true prevalence may become obvious only if all ever diagnosed cases are reported.

Comparative characterization of sun exposed and sun protected skin-derived mesenchymal-like stem cells in variegate porphyria and healthy individuals

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE

We hypothesized that upon sun exposure, a sub-population of primary skin-derived mesenchymal-like cells is deleteriously affected and thus contribute to the chronic inflammatory state in autosomal recessive variegate porphyria patients. The aim of this study was to isolate and characterize the mesenchymal-like stem cells from different areas of the skin in a porphyria patient (sun exposed, SE, and sun protected, SP) and to compare them with cells from a healthy individual.

METHODS

The proliferation rate and the migration ability of SE and SP cells were evaluated in the presence of an antioxidant compound, N-acetylcysteine. A co-culture of SE-damaged cells with the conditioned medium from the enriched mesenchymal cell-like SP population was performed in order to regenerate the dermal injured tissue after sun exposure in patients.

RESULTS

Results showed that the percentage of CD105⁺ cells varies between 3.9% in SP and 5% in SE of the healthy individual and between 3.6% and 1.4% in SP and SE in the porphyria patient, respectively. The osteogenic differentiation potential was lower in the porphyria patient when compared to the control. Furthermore, the expression of stem cell markers was more pronounced in SE than in SP cells of both control and porphyria. The use of N-acetyl cysteine did not show any beneficial effects on porphyria SE cells. Treatment with SP-conditioned medium slightly increased the expression of stem cell markers in SE of porphyria patient.

CONCLUSION

In conclusion, the pool of mesenchymal stem-like SE cells is affected in variegate porphyria patient along with modification of their self-renewal and differentiation properties.

Acute Neurological Manifestations of Porphyrias and its Types: A Systematic- Review

INTRODUCTION

Acute porphyrias cause life-threatening attacks of neurovisceral non-specific symptoms, so this condition mimics many acute medical and psychiatric diseases. The disease is very misdiagnosed, probably due to its low incidence and non-pathognomonic symptoms, this delays the effective treatment onset. Early diagnosis and treatment highly improve the prognosis and can prevent the development of neuropathic manifestations.

METHODS

We assembled a systematic review, following the PRISMA guidelines and using Pubmed as our database. Our aim was to show some peculiarities among patients that present neurological manifestations in acute porphyria attack. We obtained the patients' age, sex, clinical presentation, eurological manifestations and porphyria type of 16 patients. We also evaluated the time between symptoms onset and neurological manifestations. The average age was 28,4 ± 11,1; 50% of patients were male.

RESULTS

AIP was the most prevalent porphyria type. The average time between symptoms onset and neurological manifestations was of 9,53 ± 11,6 days. Abdominal pain; nausea and vomiting and psychiatric manifestations were the most common symptoms preceding neurological attacks. Seizures and consciousness disturbance were the most prevalent findings within an attack. We also presenting a case to illustrate how difficult this diagnosis can be.

A novel heterozygous mutation in the HMBS gene in a patient with acute intermittent porphyria and posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome

Acute intermittent porphyria (AIP) is a rare inherited disorder, which is caused by the partial deficiency of hydroxymethylbilane synthase (HMBS), an enzyme of the heme biosynthetic pathway. Abdominal pain, neuropsychiatric disturbance and neuropathy are the typical manifestations of the disease. Complications such as posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome (PRES), a rare type of brain lesion present on MRI, are also observed in patients with AIP. The present study reports on the case of a 36‑year‑old Chinese female patient with AIP and PRES. Genomic DNA were obtained from peripheral blood leukocytes and genomic regions of the HMBS gene were amplified as 2 fragments, which together contained all the exons and flanking intronic regions. Sanger sequencing of the amplified DNA fragments from the patient and the patient's family revealed a novel frameshift deletion (c.405‑406delAA) in exon 8 of the HMBS gene. This mutation leads to a subsequent truncated protein (p.Glu135AspfsX74). The recombinant mutant protein had 62% activity relative to the wild‑type protein but similar thermostability. It was confirmed that this novel mutation was the cause of AIP. Accumulation of D‑aminolevulinic acid (ALA) due to HMBS dysfunction is a potential mechanism of PRES. The manifestation of PRES may be associated with ALA‑induced cytotoxicity and the destruction of the blood‑brain barrier. In summary, in the present study, a novel pathogenic HMBS mutation was identified, expanding on the molecular heterogeneity of AIP.

Acquired erythropoietic protoporphyria: A systematic review of the literature

BACKGROUND

Erythropoietic protoporphyria (EPP) is a semi-dominantly inherited porphyria presenting with photosensitivity during early childhood. Acquired EPP has been reported; however, data regarding this rare disorder are scarce.

PURPOSE

To evaluate the characteristics of acquired EPP.

METHODS

A comprehensive search of PubMed, Google Scholar, ScienceDirect, and clinicaltrials.gov databases was performed by three reviewers. Studies describing patients with acquired EPP were included. Additionally, we present an index case of a 26-year-old patient who acquired clinically and biochemically typical EPP in association with myelodysplastic syndrome (MDS).

RESULTS

We included 20 case reports describing 20 patients. Most (80%) patients were male of mean age 58 ± 13 years. In all patients, acquired EPP was associated with hematological disease, most commonly MDS (85%) followed by myeloproliferative disease (10%). In 86% of cases, hematological disease led to abnormality or somatic mutation in chromosome 18q (the locus of the ferrochelatase gene). The mean erythrocyte protoporphyrin IX concentration was very high (4286 μg/dL). Most (90%) patients presented with photosensitivity, 20% experienced blistering, and 25% presented with hepatic insufficiency, both uncommon in EPP. In 55% of patients, hematological disease was diagnosed after occurrence of cutaneous symptoms. Beta-carotene led to partial control of symptoms in 5 patients and resolution in another patient. Azacitidine treatment of MDS led to resolution of cutaneous symptoms in three patients.

CONCLUSION

We present the distinct features of acquired EPP and highlight that any patient presenting with new-onset photosensitivity, irrespective of age should be evaluated for porphyria.

Epidemiology of cutaneous porphyria in Israel: a nationwide cohort study

BACKGROUND

From a dermatologist's perspective, there are four major types of cutaneous porphyrias (CPs): porphyria cutanea tarda (PCT), erythropoietic protoporphyria (EPP), variegate porphyria (VP) and hereditary coproporphyria (HCP). Scarce data are available regarding the epidemiology of CPs.

OBJECTIVES

To describe the epidemiology of CPs in Israel, including distribution, incidence and prevalence rates of major types.

METHODS

This retrospective study includes all patients who were diagnosed with CPs between the years 1988-2018. It is based on data from Israel's National Service for the Biochemical Diagnoses of Porphyrias, and Israeli patients' nationwide electronic medical charts. Incidence and prevalence rates were calculated.

RESULTS

Of 173 patients with CPs diagnosed during a 30-year period, 65 (38%) had VP, 62 (36%) had PCT, 31 (18%) had HCP and 15 (9%) had EPP; with incidence rates of 0.29, 0.30, 0.17, 0.07, and prevalence rates of 6.3, 4.8, 2.9, 1.6, respectively, per million population. Characteristics of patients with PCT differed from those with other CPs with regard to lack of family history, older mean age at diagnosis [51 vs. 36 (VP), 35 (HCP) and 25 (EPP) years] and male predominance (81% vs. similar distribution). All patients with PCT were diagnosed at adulthood, while 20%, 19% and 15% of patients with VP, HCP and EPP, respectively, were diagnosed during childhood or adolescence.

CONCLUSIONS

Variegate porphyria and PCT were found to be the most prevalent in Israel; however, CPs might be underdiagnosed, thus dermatologists' awareness of these rare disorders is highly important.

Posterior Reversible Encephalopathy Syndrome in a Patient with Variegate Porphyria: A Case Report

Variegate porphyria (VP) is one of the groups of rare inherited disorders of hemoglobin synthesis called Porphyria. It has two distinct manifestations, that is, those of cutaneous and nervous system. Posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome (PRES) is a rare complication of porphyria. It occurs due to vasogenic edema in white matter of predominantly parieto-occipital lobes, characterized by headache, visual disturbances, altered mental state, hypertension, and seizures. We report a child diagnosed with VP who presents with clinical signs and radiological manifestations suggestive of PRES. To our knowledge this has never been reported in a case of VP and only twice been reported in another type of porphyria. A 12-year-old pre-pubertal boy already diagnosed with VP presents with seizure, visual disturbance, altered mental status, headache, and hypertension. Initial brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) revealed bilateral increased signal intensity in parieto-occipital region. Neurological opinion suggested that the symptoms experienced by the patient seem to be a complication of porphyria. Treatment was to control hypertension and prevent use of any aggravating agents. Follow-up MRI after two weeks revealed interval reduction in disease process. Diagnosis of PRES was thus confirmed. PRES should be considered in patients presenting with symptoms typical of encephalitis/meningitis/acute disseminated encephalomyelitis in a patient suffering from porphyria. Early diagnosis is key to quick improvement and prevention of complications. Though rare in pre-pubertal patients, it should be kept as a possibility especially when patients present with hypertension. Care should be taken to not use any drugs that can trigger PRES.