Introduction
Herpes simplex virus (HSV) is one of the most commonly incriminated
viral agents of encephalitis which describes an inflammation of the
brain parenchyma (1,2). HSV-1 causes almost all cases of herpes
encephalitis beyond the neonatal age, accounting for more than 90% of
such cases (3). Detecting HSV DNA using PCR techniques is the gold
standard test despite the presence of strongly suggestive brain MRI
features. In addition to the significant mortality rate, HSV
encephalitis is also associated with significant long-term sequelae
including cognitive, behavioral, and memory abnormalities.
Central nervous system (CNS) vasculitis complicating the course of HSV
encephalitis is a rare entity, with most such experience coming from
case reports, making the pathophysiologic understanding, diagnosis, and
therapeutic approach quite challenging. We present a case of HSV
encephalitis complicated by CNS vasculitis in a 28-year-old male patient
from Ethiopia. Currently, there are only a few such reports in the
literature, and, to the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the
first case report from Africa.