A follow-up study by CT and MRI in 3 cases of Japanese encephalitis

A follow-up study by CT and MRI in 3 cases of Japanese encephalitis (JE) was performed. Neurologically dementia, forced laughing, tetraplegia and parkinsonism were observed as sequelae. In the CT and MR scans about 3 years after the onset of JE, low-density areas (LDAs) or abnormal signal intensities had remained in the thalamus and basal ganglia. The abnormalities were also found in the brain stem. When the main lesions shown by CT and MRI were compared with those of the acute stage, T2-weighted MRI clearly revealed multiple small areas with high signal intensities, although those in the acute stage had shown diffuse abnormal signals. These findings may be useful in helping to identify JE a long time after the onset.