Combination therapy for the focal form of mixed tick-borne encephalitis-Borrelia infection

Abstract

The focal form of mixed tick-borne encephalitis-Borrelia infection (MTBEBI) is characterized by a nervous system lesion with the development of permanent neurological disorders and a possible fatal outcome. Uniform approaches to treating MTBEBI have not been currently elaborated. Obviously, adequate treatment of the mixed infection requires a comprehensive approach and simultaneous action on tick-borne encephalitis and tick-borne borreliosis. Its promising treatment is immunocorrection with normal human immunoglobulin that contains a wide spectrum of antibodies and exerts an immunomodulatory effect.Objective: to evaluate the efficiency of combination (etiotropic and pathogenetic) therapy with normal human immunoglobulin for the focal form of MTBEBI.Patients and methods. The results of the treatment were analyzed in 57 patients with MTBEBI with a nervous system lesion, who had been notified in the Kemerovo Region in 2000 to 2014.Results and discussion. It was shown that the use of normal human immunoglobulin in a treatment regimen for the focal form of MTBEBI could considerably reduce the incidence of residual neurological deficit. The administration of normal human immunoglobulin was assumed to improve the efficiency of treatment for the focal form of MTBEBI. The paper also describes a clinical case of a patient with MTBEBI, which demonstrates the efficiency of combination therapy for this disease.

Keywords

• tick-borne encephalitis
• tick-borne borreliosis
• mixed tick-borne encephalitis-borrelia infection
• treatment