Clinicopathologic Findings in Patients With Paraneoplastic Neuropathies and Antibodies Strongly Associated With Cancer.

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Pathologic descriptions of peripheral nerve involvement in paraneoplastic neuropathies are sparse, mostly from autopsies focusing on CNS and dorsal root ganglia tissues. Here, we describe the clinicopathologic features of peripheral nerve biopsies in patients with paraneoplastic neurologic syndromes to expand the currently limited knowledge. METHODS: Retrospective review of the Mayo Clinic electronic medical record from 1995 to 2022 for patients identified to have subacute onset neuropathy with paraneoplastic antibodies identified in our neuroimmunology laboratory having available nerve biopsies performed at the time of diagnosis. Patients with another cause of neuropathy not linked to their subacute onset were excluded. RESULTS: Nineteen patients met inclusion criteria: 4 with amphiphysin antibodies, 6 with antineuronal nuclear antibody (ANNA)-1 only, 3 with both ANNA-1 and collapsin response-mediator protein 5 (CRMP-5), 2 with ANNA-2, and 4 with CRMP-5 antibodies only. Fifteen biopsies had reduced the density of myelinated nerve fibers-4 with multifocality. Subperineurial edema was present in 17 biopsies. Prominent epineurial perivascular inflammation was present in 3 biopsies, all belonging to patients with a lumbosacral radiculoplexus neuropathy (LRPN) phenotype. DISCUSSION: Axonal loss, subperineurial edema, and an absence of prominent inflammation are the most common findings in nerve biopsies of patients with paraneoplastic antibodies strongly associated with cancer. The LRPN phenotype was the only subset with inflammatory collections. Paraneoplastic autoantibody testing should be considered in patients with subacute onset neuropathies, with or without interstitial inflammatory findings.

Clinical-pathologic correlations in voltage-gated Kv1 potassium channel complex-subtyped autoimmune painful polyneuropathy.

INTRODUCTION: Voltage-gated Kv1 potassium channel complex (VGKC) autoantibodies subtyped for leucine-rich glioma-inactivated 1 (LGI1), contactin-associated-proteinlike 2 (CASPR2), and Kv IgGs have a spectrum of neurological presentations. Painful polyneuropathy is seen in some patients, but nerve pathology descriptions are lacking. METHODS: Clinicopathologic features were studied in subtyped VGKC-autoantibody-seropositive patients who had undergone nerve biopsies. RESULTS: Five patients were identified, 1 LGI1 IgG positive and 1 CASPR2 IgG positive, but all negative for Kv1.1-, 1.2-, 1.6-subtyped IgG autoantibodies. Median symptom duration was 17 months. Pain was the predominant symptom; 3 had mild sensory loss and/or weakness. Histopathological abnormalities were limited to axonal loss in 3. None had mononuclear cellular infiltrates. Electron micrographs revealed no interstitial abnormalities. Three patients reported marked improvement in pain with immunotherapy. CONCLUSIONS: The nerve biopsy histopathology of patients subtyped for LGI1 and CASPR2 IgGs within the VGKC-complex spectrum disorders shows either normal density or axonal fiber loss without inflammatory infiltrates. A reversible neural hyperexcitable mechanism is considered to be the cause of this painful polyneuropathy. Muscle Nerve 55: 520-525, 2017.

Microvascular alterations and the role of complement in dermatomyositis.

Different mechanisms have been proposed to explain the pathological basis of perifascicular muscle fibre atrophy in dermatomyositis. These include ischaemia due to immune-mediated microvascular injury, enhanced expression of type 1 interferon-induced gene transcripts in perifascicular capillaries and muscle fibres, and occlusion of larger perimysial blood vessels. Microvascular complement deposition is a feature of dermatomyositis pathology but the trigger for complement activation, the predominant complement pathway involved, or its role in the pathogenesis of the disease, has not been clearly defined. In the first step of this study we examined the density of capillaries and transverse vessels and searched for occlusion or depletion of larger perimysial blood vessels in 10 patients with dermatomyositis. This revealed an invariable association of perifascicular atrophy with capillary and transverse vessel depletion. The capillary and transverse vessel densities in non-atrophic fibre regions were not significantly different from those in muscle specimens of 10 age-matched controls. Next, in the same 10, as well as in 40 additional dermatomyositis patients, we searched for vascular deposits of IgG, IgM, and the C5b-9 complement membrane attack complex. Thirty-one of 50 dermatomyositis specimens contained C5b-9 reactive endomysial microvessels but none of these or other vessels reacted for IgG. Ten of 50 specimens harboured IgM-positive capillaries but only a few of these reacted for C5b-9. Finally, we analysed and compared different pathways of complement activation in dermatomyositis, lupus nephritis, and necrotic muscle fibres in Duchenne dystrophy. In lupus nephritis, C5-b9 deposits co-localized with IgG, IgM, C1q, and C4d, consistent with immune complex dependent activation of the classical complement pathway. In both dermatomyositis and Duchenne dystrophy, C5-b9 deposits co-localized with C1q and C4d and rarely with IgM indicating activation of the classical complement pathway. We conclude that: perifascicular atrophy in dermatomyositis is consistently associated with focal microvascular depletion, and that microvascular membrane attack complex deposits in dermatomyositis result from activation of the classical complement pathway triggered by direct binding of C1q to injured endothelial cells.

Rhabdomyolysis featuring muscular dystrophies.

BACKGROUND: Rhabdomyolysis is a potentially life threatening condition of various etiology. The association between rhabdomyolysis and muscular dystrophies is under-recognized in clinical practice. OBJECTIVE: To identify muscular dystrophies presenting with rhabdomyolysis at onset or as predominant feature. METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed clinical and laboratory data of patients with a genetically confirmed muscular dystrophy in whom rhabdomyolysis was the presenting or main clinical manifestation. RESULTS: Thirteen unrelated patients (males=6; females=7) were identified. Median age at time of rhabdomyolysis was 18 years (range, 2-47) and median duration between the first episode of rhabdomyolysis and molecular diagnosis was 2 years. Fukutin-related protein (FKRP) muscular dystrophy (n=6) was the most common diagnosis, followed by anoctaminopathy-5 (n=3), calpainopathy-3 (n=2) and dystrophinopathy (n=2). Four patients experienced recurrent rhabdomyolysis. Eight patients were asymptomatic and 3 reported myalgia and exercise intolerance prior to the rhabdomyolysis. Exercise (n=6) and fever (n=4) were common triggers; rhabdomyolysis was unprovoked in 3 patients. Twelve patients required hospitalization. Baseline CK levels were elevated in all patients (median 1200 IU/L; range, 600-3600). CONCLUSION: Muscular dystrophies can present with rhabdomyolysis; FKRP mutations are particularly frequent in causing such complication. A persistently elevated CK level in patients with rhabdomyolysis warrants consideration for underlying muscular dystrophy.

Neurolymphomatosis: A report of 2 cases representing opposite ends of the clinical spectrum.

INTRODUCTION: Neurolymphomatosis (NL) is a rare disorder characterized by invasion of cranial or peripheral nerves, nerve roots, or plexi, usually by aggressive subtypes of non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL). The most common clinical presentation is that of a painful polyneuropathy or polyradiculopathy, followed by cranial neuropathy and, less frequently, by painless polyneuropathy. METHODS: Clinical and pathologic findings are reported for 2 NL cases. RESULTS: The following 2 patients with NL, with disparate clinical presentations, are presented: a patient with subacute onset, painful, multifocal, mixed axonal and demyelinating radiculoplexus neuropathy due to a large B-cell NHL, who required 2 targeted fascicular nerve biopsies to demonstrate NL; and a patient with a slowly progressive, length-dependent axonal polyneuropathy due to a low-grade B-cell lymphoproliferative disorder, as shown on a diagnostic sural nerve biopsy. CONCLUSIONS: The cases described illustrate the wide clinical spectrum of NL.

Novel ANO5 homozygous microdeletion causing myalgia and unprovoked rhabdomyolysis in an Arabic man.

INTRODUCTION: Recessive mutations in the anoctamin-5 gene (ANO5) cause a spectrum of clinical phenotypes, including limb-girdle muscular dystrophy (LGMD 2L), distal myopathy, and asymptomatic hyperCKemia. METHODS: In this report we describe our clinical, electrophysiological, pathological, and molecular findings in a subject with anoctaminopathy-5. RESULTS: A 49-year-old Arabic man from a consanguineous family presented with a 5-year history of myalgias, hyperCKemia and an episode of unprovoked rhabdomyolysis. Muscle biopsy showed mild myopathic changes and interstitial amyloid deposition. ANO5 analysis detected a novel homozygous deletion of approximately 11.9 kb encompassing exons 13-17, predicted to be pathogenic. CONCLUSIONS: Anoctaminopathy-5 can manifest with a phenotype reminiscent of metabolic myopathy and should be considered as a potential cause of myalgia and myoglobinuria. Amyloid deposition in the muscle biopsy is helpful for the diagnosis. A novel homozygous ANO5 deletion was identified, suggesting that screening for common mutations may have low yield in non-European subjects.

Immune-mediated neuropathies following stem cell transplantation.

OBJECTIVE: To study the clinical, electrophysiological and pathological characteristics and outcome of immune-mediated neuropathy (IMN) following stem cell transplantation (SCT). METHODS: Retrospective chart review of the Mayo Clinic Rochester SCT database between January 1997 and August 2012. RESULTS: Of the 3305 patients who underwent SCT, 12 patients (0.36%) had IMN. The median time from SCT to IMN was 7 months. IMN typically presented as an asymmetric radiculoplexus neuropathy (7/12 patients) or acute polyradiculoneuropathy (Guillain-Barré syndrome) (4/12). Neurophysiology showed demyelinating neuropathy in four patients and axonal neuropathy in eight. Cerebrospinal fluid protein was increased in five of six patients (median 67 mg/dL). The Neuropathy Impairment Score (NIS) improved in all patients (mean NIS 43-10, p=0.016). Six patients died. One patient died from complications of IMN and one died from complications of the haematological disease. Five patients had recurrence of their malignancy within 4 months of the IMN and of these, four died. CONCLUSIONS: IMN occurs rarely in patients after SCT. Two possible mechanisms include (1) an immune reconstitution syndrome, supported by stereotypical neuropathy types (radiculoplexus and polyradiculoneuropathies), monophasic course and temporal association with SCT and (2) a paraneoplastic phenomenon, supported by frequent early malignancy recurrence following IMN.

Spontaneous low pressure headache - a review and illustrative patient.

Low pressure headache typically occurs as a complication of dural puncture. "Spontaneous" low pressure headache is a relatively rare but under-recognised cause of intractable headache. Clinical suspicion of this condition warrants imaging of the brain to confirm the diagnosis; spinal imaging may be needed to identify the site of the leak. Epidural blood patching may be necessary to seal the leak - CT fluoroscopy may be helpful in delivering the patch directly to the site of the leak. Surgical intervention may be required in intractable cases. We describe a patient with spontaneous intracranial hypotension and review the clinical and radiological features of this syndrome.

Meningococcal meningitis and a negative cerebrospinal fluid: case report and its medicolegal implications.

A normal result on the initial cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) study has been traditionally used to exclude the potential diagnosis of bacterial meningitis. However, there have been a number of case studies of bacterial meningitis confirmed by CSF culture, in which an initial lumbar puncture yielded completely normal parameters. A review of the literature reports the frequency of this scenario to arise in 0.5% to 12% of cases. This might result in the delay of appropriate treatment for this potentially fatal condition. We report a 21-year-old female patient who presented with a clinical picture compatible with bacterial meningitis but with a normal initial CSF result. Neisseria meningitidis was later cultured from her CSF. The medicolegal aspects surrounding such a scenario, and its implications towards clinical practice are discussed. We conclude that an abnormal initial CSF study might indicate a diagnosis of bacterial meningitis but a normal result does not exclude it and should not delay early institution of appropriate antimicrobial therapy.