Rasmussen's encephalitis (RE) is an immune-mediated disease, typically affecting a single cerebral hemisphere. Intractable epilepsy, hemiplegia and cognitive decline represent the clinical features; movement disorders have rarely been described. We report a case of adult-onset RE which developed hemiparkinsonism after an extraordinarily long prodromal period; to date, this is the first description of parkinsonism in RE. The association between cortical symptoms and extrapyramidal features evokes a clinical suspect of corticobasal syndrome (CBS); our patient satisfies the diagnostic criteria for possible CBS. Clinical and neuro-radiological reasons might further explain why RE accompanied by extrapyramidal signs may present as a CBS.
Keywords: Rasmussen's encephalitis; corticobasal syndrome; dysimmune syndrome; parkinsonism.