title: Clinical, imagiological and etiological spectrum of posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Analyze the cases of posterior reversible encephalopathy syndrome (PRES) admitted in a Neurology Department during an 8-year period.
  
  
  METHODS
  Retrospective observational study in a central hospital in the north of Portugal.
  
  
  RESULTS
  14 patients were identified, mean age 52.3 years. Precipitating factors included: eclampsia, isolated arterial hypertension, spinal trauma and autonomic dysreflexia, Guillain-Barré syndrome, sepsis, sarcoidosis and pulmonary cryptococcosis and drugs. Most patients presented posterior-predominant vasogenic edema lesions, however 64.2% presented frontal lesions and in 42.8% cerebellum was involved. Four patients also had acute ischemic lesions and 1 had hemorrhagic lesions. During follow-up 10 patients recovered fully, 2 recovered partially, 1 suffered a recurrence and 2 died in hospital.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  PRES has many etiological factors. The terms posterior and reversible should be revised because PRES frequently involves other brain regions and it is not always reversible. PRES patients may develop life-threatening complications and mortality is not negligible.
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Medicina Interna, Unidade Local de Saúde de Matosinhos, Hospital Pedro Hispano, Matosinhos, Portugal.
authors.forename: P Ricardo
authors.initials: PR
authors.lastname: Pereira
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Neurologia, Hospital de Braga, Braga, Portugal.
authors.forename: João
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Pinho
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Neurologia, Hospital de Braga, Braga, Portugal.
authors.forename: Margarida
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Rodrigues
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Neurologia, Hospital de Braga, Braga, Portugal.
authors.forename: João
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Rocha
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Neurologia, Hospital de Braga, Braga, Portugal.
authors.forename: Filipa
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Sousa
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Neuroradiologia, Hospital de Braga, Braga, Portugal.
authors.forename: José
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Amorim
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Neuroradiologia, Hospital de Braga, Braga, Portugal.
authors.forename: Manuel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ribeiro
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Neuroradiologia, Hospital de Braga, Braga, Portugal.
authors.forename: Jaime
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Rocha
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Neurologia, Hospital de Braga, Braga, Portugal.
authors.forename: Carla
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Ferreira
mesh_terms: D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D054038:Posterior Leukoencephalopathy Syndrome / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000209:etiology / Q000473:pathology; D012189:Retrospective Studies