Serial imaging of bilateral striatal necrosis associated with acidaemia in adults

Bilateral striatal necrosis in acute encephalopathy has been reported in a small number of adults with methanol or cyanide intoxication, hypoxic encephalopathy or haemolytic-uraemic syndrome. Acute encephalopathy with bilateral striatal necrosis has been reported in infants and children. However, the pathogenesis of the necrosis remains unclear. This is the first report of serial imaging from the very early to chronic stage in two acute encephalopathic adults with bilateral striatal necrosis. A clinicoradiological study is presented for clarification of the pathological process and pathogenesis. Striatal lesions were not detected in the very early stages, but only thereafter. Serial studies suggested that the lesions were caused by delayed neuronal death. These patients had severe lactic acidosis, near the limit for survival. There have been few reports of adults with acute encephalopathy and bilateral striatal necrosis in whom arterial pH was described; all these exhibited marked acidosis. The common pathophysiological condition among these encephalopathies with bilateral striatal necrosis could be lactic acidosis elicited by impairment of ATP generation through the Krebs cycle. The striatum might represent one of the target areas of Krebs-cycle blockade.