Date of Presentation
5-5-2022 12:00 AM
College
School of Osteopathic Medicine
Poster Abstract
New onset gait dysfunction often prompts admission to the hospital for further evaluation. The typical patient is an elderly person who normally is self-sufficient but had recently experienced a decline in their ability to care for themselves. Sometimes, however, those who present with gait dysfunction do not fit the expected demographic. These individuals raise concern for less common “zebra” presentations of neurological dysfunction. We describe one such rare case of a 39-year-old female with a new onset of type 2 diabetes mellitus and recent COVID-19 infection that presented to the emergency department with a sensation of bilateral lower extremity burning with sensorineural changes, weakness, and an inability to ambulate. Emergency department labs and preliminary imaging were grossly unremarkable. Treatment as an inpatient with IViG led to significant improvement in symptoms. Gait dysfunction is a common presentation in the ED. Recognizing abnormalities to the typical demographic and presentation are important in proper disease workup and remaining vigilant in the face of atypical diagnoses.
Keywords
Gait, Demyelinating Diseases, Autoimmune Diseases of the Nervous System
Disciplines
Emergency Medicine | Medicine and Health Sciences | Nervous System Diseases | Neurology | Pathological Conditions, Signs and Symptoms
Document Type
Poster
Included in
Emergency Medicine Commons, Nervous System Diseases Commons, Neurology Commons, Pathological Conditions, Signs and Symptoms Commons
Case Report: A Patient with Gait Dysfunction with Acute Inflammatory Demyelinating Polyneuropathy Masquerading as Diabetic Polyneuropathy
New onset gait dysfunction often prompts admission to the hospital for further evaluation. The typical patient is an elderly person who normally is self-sufficient but had recently experienced a decline in their ability to care for themselves. Sometimes, however, those who present with gait dysfunction do not fit the expected demographic. These individuals raise concern for less common “zebra” presentations of neurological dysfunction. We describe one such rare case of a 39-year-old female with a new onset of type 2 diabetes mellitus and recent COVID-19 infection that presented to the emergency department with a sensation of bilateral lower extremity burning with sensorineural changes, weakness, and an inability to ambulate. Emergency department labs and preliminary imaging were grossly unremarkable. Treatment as an inpatient with IViG led to significant improvement in symptoms. Gait dysfunction is a common presentation in the ED. Recognizing abnormalities to the typical demographic and presentation are important in proper disease workup and remaining vigilant in the face of atypical diagnoses.