EVALUATION OF THE OCCURRENCE OF ACUTE DISSEMINATED ENCEPHALOMYELITIS AFTER SARS-COV-2 INFECTION

Abstract

Covid-19 is a respiratory disease caused by SARS-CoV-2, transmitted by inhalation of droplets released through coughing or sneezing, which occurs through contact with contaminated oral, nasal and ocular mucous membranes. People contaminated with Coronavirus (HcoV) usually develop signs and symptoms, including mild respiratory problems and persistent fever, an average of 5 to 6 days after infection. The infection occurs through the lytic infection of oligodendrocytes, damaging the myelin sheath of neurons. Demyelination can initiate a disease called Acute Disseminated Encephalomyelitis (hereinafter: ADEM), which is an autoimmune disease, a rare diffuse inflammatory disease of CNS.  It is a monophasic disease, characterized by a generalized attack, most notably the white matter of the brain and spinal cord, which damages the myelin, which is a protective layer of nerve fibers, and can cause serious neurological sequelae if not identified and treated early. The main neurological symptoms found were changes in mental level, ranging from confusion to coma, ataxia and focal motor deficits, in addition to symptoms of severe acute respiratory syndrome. In view of these considerations, this study aimed to evaluate the appearance of ADEM after Sars-coV-2 virus infection. For this, a literature review was carried out with a descriptive approach about the occurrence of ADEM, the bibliographic survey was carried out through a search in the scientific databases: GOOGLE ACADEMICS, SCIENCEDIRECT SPRINGER, Medical Publisher (hereinafter: PUBMED), and SCIELO, collecting articles, theses and books between the years 2018 and 2021, in English and Portuguese.