Autoimmune GFAP astrocytopathy after viral encephalitis: A case report

Autoimmune glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) astrocytopathy is a novel autoimmune disease. This is the first report of a case of autoimmune GFAP astrocytopathy after herpes simplex viral encephalitis (HSVE). A 35-year-old female patient presented with a combination of headache, fever, seizure and psychiatric/behavioral abnormalities. She had GFAP-IgG in both serum and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) with gadolinium-enhancement revealed linear enhancement oriented radially to the ventricles. After treatment with corticosteroids, her symptoms were alleviated, the lesions enhancement reduced, and the immunoreactive intensity of GFAP-IgG decreased. This case shows an observational link between HSVE and autoimmune GFAP astrocytopathy, suggesting that autoimmune GFAP astrocytopathy may provide a new differential diagnosis for relapsing HSVE.