A clinical study of before and after stroke-like episodes in MELAS syndrome

Abstract

Mitochondrial myopathy, encephalopathy, lactic acidosis, and stroke-like episodes syndrome (MELAS) is the most representative subtype of mitochondrial diseases. However, the pathogenesis of the stroke-like episodes remains unknown. We experienced a patient with MELAS and her first stroke-like episode with a lesion in the left temporal lobe at 31 years of age. Our data indicated that hearing thresholds did not change before and after the stroke-like episode；however, her hearing level for speech in the right ear declined markedly the day before the stroke-like episode. We suspect that the decline in the hearing level for speech might be related to the symptom of the stroke-like episodes.