Area postrema lesion as a cause of intractable nausea, vomiting and hiccups in neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorders

• Published in: Zhurnal nevrologii i psikhiatrii imeni S.S. Korsakova Vol. 117; no. 10. Vyp. 2; p. 20
• Main Authors: Bakulin, I S, Simaniv, T O, Konovalov, R N, Zakharova, M N
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English; Russian
• Published: Russia (Federation) 2017
• Subjects: Area Postrema - pathology; Brain Diseases - complications; Brain Diseases - diagnosis; Female; Hiccup - etiology; Humans; Nausea - etiology; Neuromyelitis Optica - etiology; Vomiting - etiology; area posterma; opticomyelitis; clinical
• ISSN: 1997-7298
• DOI: 10.17116/jnevro201711710220-23

Neuromyelitis optica (Devic's disease) is a chronic autoimmune disease associated with the production of anti-bodies to aquaporin-4 (AQP4). Area postrema lesions is the third, after optic neuritis and myelitis, syndrome of opticomyelitis-related disorders. Clinical symptoms of this disorder include intractable nausea, vomiting and hiccups. In many cases, area postrema syndrome manifests as the first clinical symptom of a neuromyelitis optica spectrum disorder that hampers the diagnosis. The authors present a case report of a female patient with area postrema lesions developed several months before the first disabling attack of myelitis.