Case report of toxic leukoencephalopathy induced by heroin abuse

Abstract

Toxic leukoencephalopathy is a rare disease that may present with different signs and symptoms, it requires a combination of clinical signs and symptoms along with radiographic evidence to reach a diagnosis. We report the case of a young man who presented with a decreased level of consciousness and found that he took an overdose of heroin prior to admission, after investigations the patient was found to have toxic leukoencephalopathy. Its an uncommon disease, however, it should be in the differential diagnosis of any patient coming with some neurological and behavioral changes along with substance abuse, mainstay treatment is supportive.