[Neurobrucellosis: four case reports].
BACKGROUND
Brucellosis is a form of anthropozoonosis that is found the world over. It has a particularly high incidence rate in Spain, above all in rural areas such as Extremadura, Castile and Leon, Castile-La Mancha and Aragon, largely due to the consumption of non-pasteurised milk and cheese. Neurobrucellosis can be defined as a set of either early or late neurological complications caused by Brucella. It is difficult to determine its frequency, although it oscillates between 2-18% of all cases of brucellosis.


METHODS
We report the cases of four patients diagnosed as having neurobrucellosis. The different presenting clinical symptoms, the complementary explorations, treatment and duration are all described.


CONCLUSIONS
The clinical features of neurobrucellosis vary greatly and, in general, tend to be chronic. Many of the laboratory procedures usually employed in the diagnosis of brucellosis frequently give negative results. For these reasons, and because it is a disease that is both treatable and curable, the degree of suspicion must be high, especially in endemic areas, so that an early diagnosis can be made to allow suitable treatment to be established.
Adeva-Bartolomé
M T
MT
Unidad de Neurología, Hospital Virgen del Puerto, Plasencia, Cáceres, Spain. mtfj@eresmas.com
Montes-Martínez
I
I
Castellanos-Pinedo
F
F
Zurdo-Hernández
J M
JM
de Castro-García
F J
FJ
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000818:Animals; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D002002:Brucella; D002006:Brucellosis / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000503:physiopathology; D002417:Cattle; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged
D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents