Serial brain (18)FDG-PET in anti-AMPA receptor limbic encephalitis.

Immunotherapy-responsive autoimmune CNS syndromes linked to antibodies targeting surface neuronal antigens lack reliable biomarkers of disease activity. We report serial cerebral (18)FDG PET studies in a woman with AMPA receptor (AMPA-R) autoimmune limbic encephalitis. During her follow-up, despite an aggressive immunotherapy, she displayed a persistent, predominantly left hippocampal FDG hypermetabolism, in the absence of CNS inflammatory signs. Brain metabolism abnormalities regressed after increasing antiepileptic treatment, correlating with a moderate clinical improvement. Brain (18)F-FDG PET could thus represent a useful complementary tool to orient the clinical follow-up