Extensive cerebellar involvement and cognitive impairment in COVID-19-associated acute necrotizing encephalopathy.

Neurological complications of the newly appeared severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) are increasingly recognized. Here, we report a case of a young male presenting with a clinical and neuroimaging scenario of an acute necrotizing encephalopathy related to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). This case is notable by its distinct pattern of magnetic resonance imaging findings of an extensive involvement of the cerebellum, and emergence of cognitive and behavioral impairment.

Clinical and Radiological Deterioration in a Case of Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease following SARS-CoV-2 Infection: Hints to Accelerated Age-Dependent Neurodegeneration.

Systemic inflammation and the host immune responses associated with certain viral infections may accelerate the rate of neurodegeneration in patients with Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD), a rare, transmissible neurodegenerative disease. However, the effects of the newly emerged SARS-CoV-2 infection on the pathogenesis of CJD are unknown. In this study, we describe the case of an elderly female patient with sporadic CJD that exhibited clinical deterioration with the emergence of seizures and radiological neurodegenerative progression following an infection with SARS-CoV-2 and severe COVID-19. Despite efforts to control the progression of the disease, a dismal outcome ensued. This report further evidences the age-dependent neurological effects of SARS-CoV-2 infection and proposes a vulnerability to CJD and increased CJD progression following COVID-19.