Hyperintense basal ganglia on T1-weighted MR images in a patient with central nervous system lupus and chorea

We describe a patient with central nervous system lupus and choreatic movements in whom both basal ganglia showed high signal intensity on T1-weighted MR images, while the signal on T2-weighted images remained low. Within 8 months after onset, the choreatic movements had disappeared, with a corresponding decrease in the hyperintense T1 signal. The emergence of the choreatic movement disorder in this patient might have been related to the T1 hyperintensity of the basal ganglia, which, in turn, might have resulted from a vascular insult associated with central nervous system lupus.