title: Painful legs and moving toes syndrome associated with herpes zoster myelitis.
abstract: A 75-year-old woman developed painful legs and moving toes syndrome (PLMT) 16 months after the onset of herpes zoster (HZ) myelitis. Although the scattered extensive lesions due to HZ myelitis were observed to be eccentric near the posterior horn on MRI, these changes had disappeared upon the development of PLMT. Combined median and tibial nerve somatosensory evoked potentials demonstrated abnormal findings only in the tibial nerve stimuli, suggesting that a severe alteration occurred in the somatosensory fibers coming selectively from the lower legs. These findings suggest plasticity in the ascending somatosensory pathway including the posterior horn cells, probably involving the interneuron networks, for the lower legs may underlie the development of PLMT associated with HZ myelitis.
authors.affiliation: Third Department of Internal Medicine, Kagawa University School of Medicine, 1750-1 Ikenobe, Miki-cho, Kita-gun, 761-0793 Kagawa, Japan.
authors.forename: Kazuyo
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Ikeda
authors.forename: Kazushi
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Deguchi
authors.forename: Tetsuo
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Touge
authors.forename: Iwao
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Sasaki
authors.forename: Masago
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Tsukaguchi
authors.forename: Mieko
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Shimamura
authors.forename: Emi
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Komatsu
authors.forename: Hiroaki
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Takeuchi
authors.forename: Shigeki
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kuriyama
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D005073:Evoked Potentials, Somatosensory; D005260:Female; D006562:Herpes Zoster / Q000150:complications* / Q000473:pathology; D006801:Humans; D007866:Leg; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D009069:Movement Disorders / Q000473:pathology / Q000821:virology*; D009187:Myelitis / Q000150:complications* / Q000473:pathology / Q000821:virology*; D009473:Neuronal Plasticity; D010146:Pain / Q000473:pathology / Q000821:virology*; D013116:Spinal Cord / Q000473:pathology / Q000821:virology; D014034:Toes