Abstract
Human lymphoblastoid interferon (interferon-α) was administered intrathecally to two patients with subacute sclerosing panencephalitis (SSPE) as a therapeutic trial and its effects were evaluated clinically, electroencephalographically and immunologically. Inosiplex was administered together to both cases and transfer factor to one of them.
Case 1, a ten-year-old boy, was at the second stage of Jabbour's classification on admission and deteriorated gradually in spite of administration of interferon over five months. No significant beneficial effects were found.
Case 2, a ten-year-old girl, was at the second stage on admission. Although interferon was started immediately after admission, her neurological symptomes worsened during the first two months. However, the patient showed a marked clinical improvement during the further interferon therapy. No significant improvement was recognized in the serial electroencephalograms. Measles antibody titers in serum and cerebrospinal fluid were parallel to the clinical course. In this case, natural-killer cell activity against Vero cells infected with SSPE virus (Niigata 1 strain) was found to be extremely decresed but it was enhanced by in vitro interferon treatment.
No evident side effects were recognized except for transient elevation of body temperature for several hours after the i. t. interferon.
The clinical improvement in Case 2 cannot be attributed solely to the effects of interferon itself at present, because of the possibility of a fluctuating course and a spontaneous improvement of SSPE. But, there might be a possibility that interferon played an important role in improvement of clinical features in the second patient. In addition, a decrease of natural-killer cell activity found in Case 2 might be responsible in part for the pathogenesis of the disease and give a rationale to interferon therapy to it.
