title: Mycoplasma pneumoniae and central nervous system complications: a review.
abstract: Mycoplasma pneumoniae is a common cause of community-acquired pneumonia. Little is known about the extrapulmonary manifestations of this organism. Numerous central nervous system (CNS) manifestations have been described with M. pneumoniae. CNS involvement is probably the most common site of involvement in addition to the respiratory system. Up to 7% of patients hospitalized with M. pneumoniae may have CNS symptoms. Common CNS presentations include encephalitis, aseptic meningitis, polyradiculitis, cerebellar ataxia, and myelitis. The mechanism behind these CNS manifestations remains unclear. Direct invasion, neurotoxin production, or an immune-mediated mechanism has been proposed. Newer diagnostic techniques for the direct detection of the antigen and the microorganism are proving useful for the detection of extrapulmonary disease. This review comprehensively reviews the CNS complications that have been reported with M. pneumoniae.
authors.affiliation: Department of Medicine, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Ansari Nagar, New Delhi, India. randeepg@hotmail.com
authors.forename: Randeep
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Guleria
authors.forename: Nazima
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Nisar
authors.forename: Tirlok Chand
authors.initials: TC
authors.lastname: Chawla
authors.forename: Nihar Ranjan
authors.initials: NR
authors.lastname: Biswas
mesh_terms: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D002493:Central Nervous System Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000276:immunology / Q000382:microbiology*; D002494:Central Nervous System Infections / Q000382:microbiology; D006801:Humans; D009175:Mycoplasma Infections; D009177:Mycoplasma pneumoniae; D011019:Pneumonia, Mycoplasma / Q000150:complications*
chemical_list: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents