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14th June 2023
Aetiology
Viral causes of encephalitis
| Enteroviruses | Coxsackie A and B viruses
Echoviruses (most common in children and adults) Polio virus, enterovirus |
| Herpes Virus | Herpes simplex virus type 1 & 2
Varicella zoster virus Epstein Barr virus Cytomegalovirus HHV-6 and HHV-7 |
| Paramyxovirus | Mumps
Measles |
| Retrovirus | HIV |
| Arboviruses (Flavivirus family) | Japanese encephalitis virus
West Nile virus St Louis Encephalitis Dengue viruses (type 1-4) |
| Arboviruses (Alpha virus family) | Eastern equine encephalitis virus
Western equine encephalitis virus Chikungunya virus |
| Bunyaviruses | La Crosse virus |
| Coltiviruses | Colorado tick fever virus |
| Rhabdovirus | Rabies virus |
Non-viral cases of encephalitis
| Bacterial | Mycoplasma pneumoniae
Chlamydophila Rickettsiae (including scrub typhus, Rocky Mountain spotted fever) Ehrlichiosis Coxiella burnetii (Q fever) Bartonella henselae (cat scratch fever) Tropheryema whipplei (Whipple’s disease) Brucella (sp. Brucellosis) Listeria monocytogenes Actinomycosis Nocardiosis |
| Spirochetes | Treponema pallidum (syphilis)
Borrelia burgdorferi (Lyme neuroborreliosis) Borrelia recurrentis (relapsing fever) |
| Parasites | Trypanosoma brucei gambiense and Trypanosoma brucei rhodesiense
Naegleria fowleri Balamuthia mandrillaris Angiostrongylus cantonensis |
| Fungi | Coccidioidomycosis
Histoplasmosis North American blastomycosis |
| Inflammatory (para/post infectious) | Acute disseminated encephalomyelitis (ADEM)
Acute Haemorrhagic leukoencephalopathy (AHLE) Acute necrotising encephalitis (ANE) in children Bickerstaff’s encephalitis |
| Neoplastic | Paraneoplastic encephalitis |
| Other | Antibody mediated encephalitis:
Haemophagocytic Lymphohistiocytosis (HLH) syndrome Encephalitis lethargica |
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