Recognizing psychiatric presentations of anti‐NMDA receptor encephalitis in children and adolescents: A synthesis of published reports

AIM The aim of this study was to improve early recognition of anti-N-methyl-d-aspartate receptor encephalitis (anti-NMDArE) in children and adolescents by identifying characteristic temporal patterns of clinical features in patients likely to be referred for psychiatric evaluation. In this form of autoimmune encephalitis, NMDAr hypofunction is caused by autoantibodies to receptor surface components. Clinical outcomes following prompt immunotherapy are usually good, but delayed treatment often results in a protracted course with significant residual disability or death. Anti-NMDArE frequently mimics psychiatric disorders, so most patients are referred initially to a psychiatrist and treated for days or weeks before being correctly diagnosed. METHODS A systematic search of PubMed and EMBASE electronic databases identified all published reports of antibody-confirmed anti-NMDArE associated with psychiatric symptoms in patients