Postsurgical Precipitation of Autoimmune Encephalitis – An Unchartered Territory

Abstract Autoimmune encephalitis is a rapidly emerging entity. Antibodies against neuronal antigens are the driving agent for autoimmune encephalitis. Among various autoimmune encephalitides, anti-NMDA receptor encephalitis is a very frequently encountered entity, mostly in young adults. These patients usually present with rapidly progressing symptoms in the form of altered behavior, psychosis, and seizures. Detection of anti-NMDA antibodies with typical electroencephalographic changes and magnetic resonance imaging of brain findings aids in its diagnosis. This entity either develops de novo or, in some cases, after herpes virus infection of the brain. However, the literature has never described postsurgical precipitation of NMDA encephalitis. We describe here a case of a middle-aged female who developed NMDA encephalitis after laparoscopic cholecystectomy.