A rare case of paraneoplastic limbic encephalitis leading to epileptic seizure in a patient with ovarian carcinoma

Abstract

Paraneoplastic limbic encephalitis (PLE), a rare and diagnostically-challenging encephalopathy, is frequently associated with an underlying malign neoplastic tumor. Epileptic symptoms are uncommon but can be the first sign of the disease. We present a patient admitted to our intensive care unit (ICU) unit with epileptic seizure and a Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) of six. All tests and investigations that had been utilized for this patient's diagnosis, including blood tests, serological analyses, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), electroencephalogram (EEG) and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) test results were evaluated. The patient had been diagnosed with ovarian carcinoma within the last year. The patient's cancer history, her most recent complaints and MRI results were strongly suspicious for paraneoplastic limbic encephalitis. Her neurological condition improved rapidly in a few days with steroid therapy. This case showed that any neurological deterioration based on an ovarian oncologic disease can bring PLE to mind. The possibility of PLE must be taken into consideration in patients presenting with epileptic seizures after neoplastic diagnoses.