A 41‐year‐old woman was seen at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Neuroimmunology
Clinic in 2017 for recurrent episodes of fever, neck stiffness, and back and leg pain.
In 2002, at age 26 years, she had several episodes of back and neck pain, malaise,
and fever, each lasting 1 to 3 days (Fig 1). A chest x‐ray and complete blood count
were normal. Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) during one of these episodes showed pleocytosis
(60 white blood cells [WBC]/μl; 60% monocytes, 25% lymphocytes, 15% neutrophils),
with elevated protein (96 mg/dl) and low glucose (26 mg/dl Table Supplementary Table
1). Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) of the brain showed subtle fluid‐attenuated inversion
recovery (FLAIR) hyperintensity in the sulcal CSF. MRI of the spine was normal. Extensive
investigations including CSF Mycobacterium tuberculosis (TB) complex polymerase chain
reaction (PCR) and culture, Coccidioides antibodies, histoplasma antigen, cryptococcal
antigen, and herpes simplex virus and varicella zoster virus PCRs were negative (see
Supplementary Table 1). Nonetheless, she was treated empirically with valacyclovir
for 2 weeks. She had had a recent exposure to TB and had converted from a negative
purified protein derivative (PPD) skin test in 2001 to a positive result at the time
of her presentation in 2002. Thus, she was also treated empirically for TB meningitis
(TBM) with rifampin, pyrazinamide, and ethambutol for 1 year. Isoniazid (INH) was
started but was discontinued after several weeks due to transaminitis and nausea.
She did not receive adjunctive steroids.
Figure 1
Clinical timeline. TB = Mycobacterium tuberculosis.
Her symptoms resolved until 2006 when, immediately following spinal epidural anesthesia
during childbirth, she developed a fever with headache, neck stiffness, back pain,
and night sweats. She was treated for endometritis but continued to have similar but
less severe symptoms for several months. In early 2007, she acutely developed bilateral
gluteal pain and left leg dysesthesias. CSF again showed pleocytosis (130 WBC/μl;
83% lymphocytes, 13% monocytes, 2% neutrophils, 2% other) with elevated protein (132
mg/dl) and low glucose (10 mg/dl). CSF TB PCR and culture, cryptococcal antigen, bacterial
and fungal cultures, and viral PCRs, as well as CSF cytology and flow cytometry for
malignant cells, were negative (see Supplementary Table 1). MRI of the lumbar spine
now showed abnormal enhancement and nerve‐root thickening in the caudal thecal sac,
indicating arachnoiditis (see Fig 2A, B); brain, cervical, and thoracic spine MRI
was normal. Repeat lumbar spine MRI 2 months later showed more extensive enhancement
and clumping of the cauda equina. Computed tomography (CT) scans of the chest, abdomen,
and pelvis, and a gallium scan, were unremarkable.
Figure 2
Lumbar spine magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) findings. (A, B) MRI of the lumbar spine
in 2015 showed a cystlike structure in the lumbosacral sac (black arrows) seen on
sagittal (A) and axial (B) T2‐weighted images. (C, D) Repeat MRI in early 2017 showed
clumping of the nerve roots of the cauda equina and enhancement of the nerve roots
on postcontrast T1‐weighted images (D, white arrows) compared to precontrast images
(C). (E–H) In late 2017, soon after a symptom flare, lumbar spine MRI showed an extramedullary,
intradural nodule (white arrowheads) on T2‐weighted (E, F) and T1‐weighted (G) images,
which demonstrated contrast enhancement (H).
In April 2007, she had a laminectomy and biopsy at L5/S1. The dura was thick, and
there were adhesions within the thecal sac and scar tissue surrounding the nerve roots.
Histology showed lymphohistiocytic inflammation and a poorly formed non‐necrotizing
granuloma. Mycobacterial cultures were negative. There was concern that premature
discontinuation of INH in 2002 may have led to incomplete treatment of TBM, so she
was again treated empirically for TB with rifampin, INH, pyrazinamide, ethambutol,
and moxifloxacin for 1 year, as well as 3 weeks of prednisone 60 mg daily followed
by a 3‐week prednisone taper. This time, pyrazinamide was stopped early due to transaminitis
and nausea, and ethambutol was stopped after several months when her CSF profile improved.
Repeat lumbar punctures (LPs) showed normalization of protein and glucose with mild
residual CSF pleocytosis (5–10 WBC/μl). Her symptoms improved significantly, and she
resumed her daily activities. However, she continued to have intermittent mild low
back pain, sometimes accompanied by chills.
In 2015, at age 39 years, several days after a partial thyroidectomy for an incidentally
discovered thyroid nodule, the patient again developed low back and leg pain, chills,
headache, fever, and neck stiffness. She was treated with valacyclovir for possible
herpes meningitis, as well as prednisone 60 mg daily for 5 weeks for arachnoiditis,
with immediate improvement in symptoms. However, her pain recurred when prednisone
was tapered gradually over the next several months, and she also developed pain with
eye movement, urinary frequency and hesitancy, and subjective sensory changes in the
left leg distally from the knee. MRI showed evidence of worsening lumbosacral arachnoiditis
with thickening and enhancement of the cauda equina. There was also displacement of
the cauda equina posteriorly and laterally by a loculated cystlike structure (see
Fig 2A, B). She had another LP; however, only a small amount of fluid was obtained,
possibly due to the loculation. The CSF was bloody (1,075 red blood cells [RBC]/μl)
with 9 WBC/μl (78% lymphocytes, 22% neutrophils), elevated glucose (179 mg/dl), and
low protein (13 mg/dl). Cryptococcal antigen and fungal cultures were negative. She
had a whole body fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (FDG‐PET) CT that
was normal. The etiology of the arachnoiditis was thought to be postinfectious or
autoimmune. She was treated with a 3‐day course of intravenous methylprednisolone,
followed by oral prednisone, with dramatic improvement; however, pain, neck stiffness,
and fever again recurred when steroids were tapered several weeks later.
She was subsequently maintained on prednisone, and any attempt to decrease to <35
mg/day resulted in worsening of her back pain, fatigue, and intermittent low‐grade
fevers and night sweats. Due to concern for neurosarcoidosis or another autoimmune
disorder, she was placed on concomitant mycophenolate mofetil (up to 3,000 mg/day)
for several months in 2016, without any improvement. While continuing the prednisone,
she was transitioned from mycophenolate mofetil to methotrexate up to 15 mg/wk in
early 2017, also with no improvement or ability to taper steroids. She developed bilateral
cataracts attributed to chronic corticosteroid use.
At the time of her presentation to the NIH Neuroimmunology Clinic in 2017, she had
constant dull, aching pain in her back and buttocks that worsened with prolonged activity
or stress. Every 1 to 3 months, she had several days of malaise and fever up to 38.3°C
accompanied by more severe back and buttock pain. She complained of a sensation of
urinary retention, although postvoid residuals were normal. She denied constipation
or bowel incontinence, weakness or numbness, or neurological symptoms in her arms.
Treatment of pain with pregabalin was minimally effective and caused drowsiness. Her
pain responded to nonsteroidal anti‐inflammatory drugs.
She was born in Mumbai, India, immigrated to Arizona at age 22 years, and later moved
to New York and then Maryland. She returned to India once, in 2009, and had no other
foreign travel. Her medical history was significant for thrombocytopenia during early
childhood, hepatitis B virus infection at age 12 years that subsequently resolved,
left facial palsy in her teens associated with a herpetic rash in her left ear canal,
and fever, headache, and malaise in 1998 at age 22 years, for which she was treated
for malaria despite a negative blood smear. She had a sister with breast cancer and
several distant family members with cancer, including leukemia, neuroblastoma, lung
cancer, and a hepatoma. She had no family history of autoimmune or neurological disease,
and no family members with frequent or severe infections.
Her general physical and neurological evaluations were normal with the exception of
mild atrophy in both legs without fasciculations and with preserved strength. Lumbar
spine MRI again showed arachnoiditis with some extension superiorly compared to 2015
(see Fig 2C, D). Brain MRI showed a few small foci of leptomeningeal enhancement on
postgadolinium FLAIR images. Blood was negative for rheumatologic testing, human immunodeficiency
virus type 1 antibody, human T‐cell lymphotropic virus type 1 and 2 antibodies, and
Lyme serology. Erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) and C‐reactive protein (CRP) were
normal (see Supplementary Table 1).
Given the patient's previously negative infectious workups as well as her response
to steroids, her symptoms and MRI findings were thought to be secondary to an autoimmune
process, perhaps triggered initially by an infection. As she had no response to therapies
directed at lymphocytes (methotrexate, mycophenolate), she was given a 1‐month trial
of the IL‐1 receptor antagonist anakinra (up to 200 mg/day), with no improvement in
her chronic symptoms. However, about 1 week after discontinuation of anakinra, she
developed her typical flare symptoms of malaise and worsening back pain. Her neurologic
examination was stable. She had an LP at that time, which showed 156 RBC/μl, 30 WBC/μl
(92% lymphocytes, 4% monocytes, 4% neutrophils), total protein 41 mg/dl, and glucose
47 mg/dl. Infectious studies, including mycobacterial culture, histoplasma antigen,
and viral PCRs, were negative. She had an elevated IgG index of 2.41 (normal range
= 0.26–0.62) and partially identical oligoclonal bands in CSF and serum (pattern 3).
She had an elevated blood WBC count of 15,680 cells/μl (94% neutrophils) and normal
ESR and CRP. Anakinra was restarted, and her flare symptoms improved over the next
several weeks, although her chronic symptoms continued. Several months later, a surveillance
lumbar spine MRI showed enlargement and new contrast enhancement of a subarachnoid
nodule (see Fig 2E–H).
An additional test was performed, and a diagnosis was made.
Differential Diagnosis Discussion
This is a 41‐year‐old woman with a 15‐year history of relapsing meningitis that progressed
to chronic lumbar arachnoiditis, with several notable relapses following episodes
of physical stress. Despite multiple investigations, no definitive etiology was identified,
and the disease recurred despite multiple empirical treatment regimens for TB, herpesvirus
infections, and inflammatory conditions. Several possible diagnoses should be considered
at this stage. We focus our discussion around the findings of chronic arachnoiditis
and granulomatous disease.
Infectious
The patient's initial presentation at age 26 years was of a subacute prodrome followed
by acute meningism. An infectious cause was appropriately at the top of the differential.
Given the subacute history and the monocyte‐predominant CSF with WBC < 100 cells/μl,
bacterial meningitis secondary to typical pathogens, although possible, was less likely.1,
2 Subacute causes of meningitis commonly occur in the setting of viral, parasitic,
fungal, or atypical bacterial infections, such as TB.2 Multiple investigations for
these types of pathogens were negative, and there was no evidence of systemic infection
by CT or FDG‐PET CT. However, TB PCR and culture are insensitive, and up to half of
people with TBM have no evidence of systemic disease.3, 4 Given her recent exposure
to TB and subsequent PPD conversion, CSF pleocytosis, hypoglycorrhachia, and the poor
sensitivity of diagnostic tests for TBM, empiric treatment was appropriate given the
disease's high morbidity and mortality.5, 6, 7 Her prolonged remission after empiric
TB therapy was also reassuring.
Her second attack 4 years later occurred acutely after an epidural anesthetic in the
setting of pregnancy, when she was potentially more prone to infection. MRI showed
new lumbar arachnoiditis. Efforts to culture or detect a pathogenic organism from
the CSF were again unsuccessful, despite CSF pleocytosis and low glucose. Surgical
biopsy revealed a poorly formed non‐necrotizing granuloma.
Necrotizing granulomas are a hallmark of TB; however, non‐necrotizing granulomas can
be found in TB‐positive patients, and this finding should not dissuade the clinician
from the diagnosis if clinical suspicion is high.8, 9 INH is a cornerstone medication
in the therapy of TBM, and patients with INH resistance have significantly worse outcomes.10,
11, 12, 13 The patient's initial TBM treatment did not include an adequate course
of INH, and there was concern for recurrence. TB affects the spine predominantly in
the form of extramedullary disease.14 Spinal arachnoiditis can occur as a complication
of TBM and can infrequently be an asymptomatic finding.14, 15, 16 Cases of delayed
lumbar arachnoiditis, occurring up to 15 years after effective treatment of the initial
TBM, have been reported.17, 18
There are a multitude of infectious, autoimmune, and neoplastic causes of granulomatous
disease in the central nervous system (CNS) (Table 1).19 Most notably in this patient,
other infectious etiologies to consider would include fungal infections, neurosyphilis,
and a variety of parasitic infections. Many of these conditions can cause chronic
meningitis with a relapsing component, and broad diagnostic tests, such as cultures,
may detect some (but not all) of these pathogens.20
Table 1
Causes of Central Nervous System Granulomatous Disease
Infectious19, 70
Immune19, 71, 72, 73, 74, 75, 76
Bacteria
Common variable immunodeficiency
Bartonella henselae
Chronic granulomatous disease
Brucella sp.
Idiopathic pachymeningitis
Listeria monocytogenes
Kikuchi–Fujimoto disease
Mycobacterium leprae
Neurosarcoidosis
Mycobacterium tuberculosis
Rheumatoid arthritis
Nocardia sp.a
Vasculitis44, 45
Treponema pallidum
Eosinophilic granulomatosis with polyangiitis
Tropheryma whipplei
Giant cell arteritis
Fungi
Granulomatosis with polyangiitis
Aspergillus sp.b
Primary angiitis of the central nervous system
Candida albicans
b
Takayasu arteritis
Coccidioides sp.c
ANCA‐associated vasculitis
Cryptococcus neoformans
Malignancy
77, 78, 79
Histoplasma capsulatum
Lymphomatoid granulomatosis
Mucormycosisa
Langerhans cell histiocytosis
Paracoccidioides brasiliensis
d
Erdheim–Chester disease
Parasites
Acanthamoeba sp.b
Balamuthia mandrillaris
Echinococcus sp.d
Naegleria fowleri
Paragonimus westermani
c
Plasmodium sp.c
Schistosoma sp.c
Taenia sp.c
Toxoplasma gondii
Trypanosoma cruzi
a
In immunocompromised or diabetic people or intravenous drug users.
b
In immunocompromised hosts.
c
In people with history of travel to endemic areas.
d
In people with prolonged residence in endemic areas.
ANCA = antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibody.
Arachnoiditis is a rare condition characterized by chronic inflammation of the arachnoid
and pia mater with increased production of collagen deposition between the two layers,
leading to adhesions. Anatomically related cranial and radicular nerve roots become
edematous and hyperemic before being entrapped and clumped together in the adhesive
leptomeninges. Over time, the nerves atrophy due to diminished blood supply.21 Intracranial
arachnoiditis can lead to cranial nerve abnormalities, with blindness possible in
cases of optochiasmatic arachnoiditis.22 Lumbar arachnoiditis can cause back and lower
limb pain, variable neurological deficits, and partial cauda equina syndrome. However,
the clinical manifestations depend on the severity and location of disease.23 Any
irritant or pathogen that causes chronic inflammation of the arachnoid mater can lead
to adhesive arachnoiditis, and therefore, despite the rarity of the syndrome, the
potential etiologies are broad. Older contrast agents used in CT myelograms (particularly
ethyliodophentylate, which is no longer used), blood breakdown following subarachnoid
hemorrhage, older anesthetic preservatives, and lumbar surgery have all been implicated.23
Other causes include infections, autoimmune conditions, and malignancy, as described
below. Despite an extensive workup, a causative organism may not be found, due to
poor sensitivities of diagnostic assays or unintentional omission of appropriate pathogen‐specific
investigations.
Fungal infections such as Cryptococcus and Candida species can cause chronic meningitis
and arachnoiditis.15, 22, 24, 25 However, this patient was not known to be immunocompromised
or to have engaged in intravenous drug use, making fungal meningitis less likely.
In addition, her clinical course and CSF profile were not consistent with coccidioidomycosis,
which was suspected because she had lived in Arizona. Neurocysticercosis (NCC) can
cause spinal arachnoid disease, usually in patients with basal arachnoid disease,
and can be asymptomatic, although this was not considered in this patient (although
she grew up in a country where NCC is endemic) because no parenchymal or subarachnoid
cysts were detected on at least 8 brain MRIs over 15 years.26 She did have a cyst
adjacent to the lumbar cord seen on MRI in 2015; however, in light of her overall
presentation and lack of brain cysts, NCC was not investigated as a possible cause.
Syphilis can rarely cause subacute meningitis with optochiasmal arachnoiditis and
has also been implicated in lumbar arachnoiditis.27, 28 Schistosomiasis can manifest
with spinal cord disease, either with transverse myelitis commonly involving the conus
medullaris or with lumbar arachnoiditis.29 Neuroschistosomiasis occurs in endemic
regions, such as Egypt, but neither India nor the USA is considered a high‐risk area.30
Meningitis can also be seen in angiostrongyliasis, gnathostomiasis, and sparganosis
parasitic infections, but usually with a much more acute course.31, 32 Case reports
of vertebral disease and lumbar arachnoiditis secondary to Echinococcus granulosus,
a zoonotic parasitic infection transmitted from dogs, have also been described.33,
34 Amoebic infections such as Balamuthia mandrillaris can cause granulomatous meningitis,
but the course is usually much more rapid.35 An occult or indolent infection in her
lumbar canal may have incited a larger‐than‐expected immune response after the introduction
of an epidural needle, which would otherwise cause only a mild local inflammatory
response.
On a single LP in 2002, our patient had CSF eosinophilia, with eosinophils making
up 1% of 147 WBC/μl. Eosinophilic meningitis, which is defined as the presence of
at least 10% eosinophils of CSF WBC or at least 10 eosinophils/μl, is most often caused
by a helminthic infection, most commonly Angiostrongylus catonensis. However, a wide
variety of other infections as well as malignancy and autoimmune disease, including
sarcoidosis, can also cause CSF eosinophilia, with variable blood eosinophilia.31
Inflammatory Conditions
Postinfectious autoimmune neurological conditions are common. Paradoxical worsening
of TBM is an immune‐mediated response that can present up to a year after effective
treatment, with 4% of patients developing spinal arachnoiditis.36 Postinfectious inflammatory
lumbar arachnoiditis can also be seen following cryptococcal meningitis secondary
to a postinfectious inflammatory response syndrome. Most cases have negative cryptococcal
cultures in CSF.37
Neurosarcoidosis is an autoimmune non‐necrotizing granulomatous condition that can
present with both systemic and neurological disease.38 Neurosarcoidosis commonly causes
a relapsing chronic meningitis, and chronic lumbar arachnoiditis has been described.39,
40 Neurological symptoms can be the initial presentation of neurosarcoidosis in 50%
of patients, with 85% ultimately developing systemic disease but with a significant
percentage continuing to have isolated CNS involvement.41 Features that prompt the
consideration of neurosarcoidosis in our patient were her presentation with chronic
meningitis and arachnoiditis, CSF pleocytosis, low CSF glucose (which can occur in
14% of patients), non‐necrotizing granulomas on biopsy, and the relapsing nature of
the disease in the same region of the CNS.41, 42, 43 Despite extensive investigation
including CT of the chest, abdomen, and pelvis as well as FDG‐PET/CT, there was no
evidence of systemic sarcoidosis. Her later relapses responded extremely well to steroid
therapy, and she became dependent on steroids, further implicating an autoimmune etiology.
Primary CNS vasculitis can also present with granulomatous inflammation, but it rarely
involves the spinal cord,44, 45 and blood vessel wall inflammation was not identified
on biopsy. Antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibody (ANCA)‐associated vasculitis can also
have CNS involvement, but repeat serum ANCA testing was negative.
Malignancy
Invasive malignancy of the subarachnoid space is another important diagnostic consideration.
Despite the patient's strong family history of cancer, there was no evidence of malignancy
in repeated CSF cytology and flow cytometry examinations, on lumbar meningeal biopsy,
or by whole body imaging. In addition, the sheer length of the 15‐year disease course
with no manifestations of systemic malignancy make the diagnosis less likely. However,
this diagnostic possibility should always still be considered, especially given that
systemic glucocorticoids can temporarily improve hematologic malignancies, and CSF
cytology is notoriously insensitive.
Research CSF Metagenomic Sequencing
Despite the presumption of an autoimmune etiology, lingering concerns about an occult
infection prompted enrollment of the patient in a research study at University of
California, San Francisco to investigate her CSF with metagenomic next generation
sequencing (mNGS), an unbiased approach to the identification of neuroinfectious diseases.
The use of mNGS has gained momentum over the past several years, with several notable
case reports and case series showcasing mNGS's ability to capture a broad range of
infections with a single assay.24, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52 Total RNA is extracted
from a patient's CSF, and complementary DNA (cDNA) is generated by reverse transcription
with random hexamer primers. The cDNA is then converted into a library of random fragments,
which is then sequenced on a massively parallel scale.53 The resulting genomic data
are then processed through a bioinformatics pipeline, which removes human, low‐complexity,
redundant, and poor‐quality sequences. The remaining sequences are searched against
all known organisms in the National Center for Biotechnology Information's GenBank
database to identify the source of the high‐quality, nonredundant, high‐complexity,
nonhuman sequences.54, 55, 56 As a result, it is possible to identify the vast majority
of known organisms, including viral, fungal, bacterial, and parasitic infections,
whether or not they are being considered as part of the treating physician's differential
diagnosis.
In this case, mNGS of total RNA extracted from 500 μl of the patient's CSF generated
5,750,572 pairs of 135 nucleotide sequences. After computational filtering, there
were 67,334 pairs of high‐quality, nonhuman, and nonredundant sequences. Of these,
2,725 sequence pairs unambiguously aligned to the genus Taenia with 99 to 100% similarity
to Taenia solium. Based on a z score–based statistical model comparing the abundance
of organisms in the sample to "no template" water controls and uninfected CSF samples,
T. solium was the highest ranking organism, with all other identified microbes consistent
with frequent environmental contaminants.24 The diagnosis of NCC was confirmed with
a clinical CSF cestode antigen assay and serology, which previously had not been performed.57
Retrospective review of the patient's earlier meningeal biopsy did not reveal evidence
of cysticerci.
Discussion of Pathology and Diagnosis
NCC is caused by infection with T. solium, the pork tapeworm. The condition leads
to single or multiple intraparenchymal, ventricular, and subarachnoid cysts. NCC is
endemic to Central America, South America, Sub‐Saharan Africa, and Asia.58 The hallmark
of parenchymal NCC is the formation of a vesicular cyst that degenerates from a viable
to a calcified form. During the viable stage, the parasite is thought to evade host
defenses, and there is minimal to no immune response.59 Cyst degeneration occurs when
the immune system detects the parasite. The pathogen can no longer evade the immune
system, and a robust granulomatous inflammatory response occurs, which can lead to
significant neurological morbidity.60, 61 The final, calcified stage contains a dead
parasite and creates minimal inflammatory response.58, 62 In subarachnoid NCC, the
parasite can lack typical cystic structures, making it more challenging to identify
on imaging. Subarachnoid NCC can also cause pronounced inflammation, which can be
difficult to control and treat.63, 64 Spinal NCC is a rarer manifestation of NCC,
with extramedullary arachnoid disease constituting the majority of cases.26 Intracranial
disease is also evident in most cases, but our patient only had subtle leptomeningeal
enhancement on brain MRI and no intraparenchymal or intraventricular lesions.26 In
retrospect, the cyst seen on the patient's lumbar spine MRI in 2015, and the enhancing
intradural extramedullary lumbar nodule seen in 2017, likely represented degenerating
cysts, although even after the diagnosis was made there was debate among neuroradiologists
about whether the findings on MRI in 2015 represented a Taenia cyst versus arachnoid
scarring. At the time, these were not identified as parasitic, given the lack of more
typical brain cysts, as well as the larger clinical context of recurrent fever and
constitutional symptoms, which are unusual features of NCC.65, 66 Nevertheless, NCC
should be considered in any patient with chronic meningitis who has spent time in
an endemic area, even without typical MRI findings.
Follow‐up
After the NCC diagnosis, the patient was started on dual antihelminthic therapy with
praziquantel and albendazole. She was also started on the tumor necrosis factor α
inhibitor etanercept to protect against an inflammatory reaction to degenerating cysts.67
On this therapy, she tolerated a steroid taper for the first time in 2 years, and
after a year was able to discontinue steroids completely. Following 3 months of treatment,
her MRI remained stable, CSF demonstrated reduced leukocytosis (10 WBC/μl; 91% lymphocytes,
7% monocytes, 2% neutrophils) with normal protein and glucose, and the CSF cestode
antigen was no longer detectable. CSF cestode antigen was again undetectable after
a year of treatment, and so antihelminthic treatment and etanercept were stopped,
with the intention of stopping anakinra in the coming months. She continues to have
fatigue and low back and buttock pain but has been able to increase her daily activities
and has not had a severe symptom flare since starting specific therapy.
This case thus highlights the utility of mNGS for the diagnosis of atypical presentations
of common infections.24, 68, 69 The case also vividly illustrates that either improvement
or lack of clinical deterioration in the setting of immunosuppression does not rule
out an underlying infectious etiology, even after years of treatment.
Author Contributions
E.S.B., A.V., A.N., J.L.D., and M.R.W. contributed to the conception and design of
the study. E.S.B., E.M.O., T.N., D.S.R., A.V., A.N., L.M.K., H.A.S., K.C.Z., J.L.D.,
and M.R.W. contributed to the acquisition and analysis of data. E.S.B., P.S.R., and
M.R.W. contributed to drafting the text and preparing the figures.
Potential Conflicts of Interest
Nothing to report.
Supporting information
Supporting Information Table
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