title: Varicella zoster encephalitis mimicking stroke.
abstract: Physicians need to consider a broad differential diagnosis when evaluating a patient presenting with a suspected stroke. The rates of overdiagnosis of stroke in studies of consecutive patients vary from 19% to 31%. The two most common stroke mimics are hypoglycemia and seizure, but several etiologies have been reported.We reported the case of a 41-year-old patient presenting to the emergency department with aphasia and right-side hemiparesis, initially suspected to have stroke and finally diagnosed of varicella-zoster encephalitis.
authors.affiliation: Department of Emergency Medicine, Hospital Valle de los Pedroches, Pozoblanco, Córdoba, Spain. Electronic address: joa51274@hotmail.com.
authors.forename: Joaquín Valle
authors.initials: JV
authors.lastname: Alonso
authors.affiliation: Department of Emergency Medicine, Hospital Valle de los Pedroches, Pozoblanco, Córdoba, Spain.
authors.forename: Javier
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Fonseca
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiology, Hospital Valle de los Pedroches, Pozoblanco, Córdoba, Spain.
authors.forename: Daniel
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: López
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, Hospital Universitario Reina Sofia, Córdoba, Spain.
authors.forename: Juan José
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Ochoa
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001921:Brain / Q000473:pathology; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D020804:Encephalitis, Varicella Zoster / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000473:pathology; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D059906:Neuroimaging; D020521:Stroke / Q000175:diagnosis*