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Acquired encephalopathy associated with carnitine deficiency after cefditoren pivoxil administration

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Abstract

We describe a 47-year-old woman who presented with palinopsia and subacute altered mental change after cefditoren pivoxil administration. The patient showed characteristic clinical manifestations of hypocarnitinemia, which affected her state of consciousness and she had radiologic findings that revealed metabolic encephalopathy with cytotoxic edema in the right occipital area and intracranial hemorrhages in right occipital and left frontal areas. Follow-up imaging after oral carnitine supplementation demonstrated complete resolution of the bilateral frontal subcortical T2 high-intensity lesions. Carnitine deficiency due to cefditoren pivoxil treatment may present as metabolic encephalopathy in adults. This possibility should be considered with the differential diagnosis of encephalopathies, and carnitine levels should be checked in patients treated with cefditoren pivoxil.

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Acknowledgments

This study was supported by a grant of the Korean Health Technology R&D Project, Ministry of Health and Welfare, Republic of Korea (A101535).

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Correspondence to Kon Chu.

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Kim, H., Chu, K., Jung, KH. et al. Acquired encephalopathy associated with carnitine deficiency after cefditoren pivoxil administration. Neurol Sci 33, 1393–1396 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10072-012-0939-7

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10072-012-0939-7

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