title: Nervous System Abnormalities and Legionnaire's Disease.
abstract: Although patients with Legionnaire's disease frequently develop alterations of consciousness, this is no more frequent than in patients hospitalized with other, equally severe forms of bacterial pneumonia. Legionella meningitis occurs rarely, if ever. Patients with Legionnaire's are susceptible to critical illness polyneuropathy/myopathy, as are other critically ill patients. Legionnaire's patients may develop MRI hyperdensities in the splenium of the corpus callosum, as may other patients with severe infections. Patients with Legionnaire's may be at increased risk of, and rarely develop, immune-mediated multifocal brain (acute disseminated encephalomyelitis) or peripheral nerve disease (Guillain-Barré syndrome).
authors.affiliation: Sidney Kimmel Medical College of Thomas Jefferson University, 99 Beauvoir Avenue, Summit, NJ 07902, USA; Department of Neurosciences, Overlook Medical Center, 99 Beauvoir Avenue, Summit, NJ 07902, USA. Electronic address: John.halperin@atlantichealth.org.
authors.forename: John J
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Halperin
mesh_terms: D006801:Humans; D007877:Legionnaires' Disease; D009422:Nervous System Diseases; D009421:Nervous System Malformations
keywords: Critical illness polyneuropathy; Encephalopathy; Legionnaire’s disease; Nervous system abnormalities; Parainfectious