News
Can AI help diagnose autoimmune encephalitis?
12 August 2025
Researchers in Germany and Switzerland have developed a ground-breaking artificial intelligence (AI) system that can predict whether patients with suspected autoimmune encephalitis will test positive for disease-specific antibodies. The AI system, details of which were published in Scientific Reports in March this year, could dramatically speed up diagnosis of this serious brain condition. Diagnosing autoimmune […]
Read More
Encephalitis International publishes article on vaccine hesitancy
31 July 2025
Encephalitis International is proud to announce the publication of an article on vaccine hesitancy in the prestigious journal Practice Nurse. Introduction The work, co-authored by Encephalitis International’s CEO Dr Ava Easton and its Senior Medical Writer Prav Prathapan, traces the history of vaccine hesitancy from its origins in 19th century anti-vaccination movements to today’s digitalised […]
Read More
Psychology Today - The Inflamed Brain (July 2025)
16 July 2025
Can a Virus Increase Your Risk of Dementia? The Herpes Hypothesis: How common viruses might influence long-term brain health Co-authored by Lærke Storgaard Duerlund, M.D., and Arun Venkatesan, Professor Interest in the herpes-dementia connection began in the 1990s. Despite decades of research, the role of herpesviruses in dementia remains uncertain. Visit The Can a Virus […]
Read More
My Neurology Academic Clinical Fellowship (ACF): First year - by Dr Abdusshakur Muhammad Auwal
4 July 2025
By Dr Abdusshakur Muhammad Auwal, NIHR Academic Clinical Fellow, University of Liverpool and Walton NHS Foundation Trust Introduction The first year of my Neurology Academic Clinical Fellowship (ACF) has been intense but very rewarding. It was intense due to the need to combine clinical work and research at the same time while maintaining competency in […]
Read More
Psychology Today - The Inflamed Brain (May 2025)
23 May 2025
The 100-year-old Brain Disease That Could Come Back How to face a pandemic that affects the mind. by Jonathan Rogers, Ph.D A hundred years ago, a pandemic swept around the world and we had no idea what caused it. Worse still, even today, we’re still not sure. Patients often developed Parkinson’s-like symptoms, personality changes, or […]
Read More
New research on emotional adjustment after encephalitis
6 May 2025
Key points: A team of UK researchers, including Encephalitis International’s CEO Dr Ava Easton, explored how to accurately capture experiences of emotional adjustment after encephalitis. Transdiagnostic cognitive behavioural therapy (T-CBT), previously tested for anxiety, can capture experiences of emotional adjustment after encephalitis. Future clinical trials and psychological therapy may be informed by this work. Introduction […]
Read More
Football auction!
6 May 2025
On Friday 9th May, Encephalitis International will be holding a 10-day auction of over 20 football shirts and memorabilia including several items from Premier Leagues teams across England and Scotland. The shirts have been donated by the clubs in response to a request made jointly by Encephalitis International, Huddersfield Town AFC and Peter and Kathy […]
Read More
Extraordinary concert raises funds in memory of Eleanor
24 April 2025
We are always deeply thankful to many of our community who raise funds for Encephalitis International in a variety of ways. Earlier this year, on the 9th February 2025, Peter and Kathy Haigh in partnership with the Masquerade and Belcanto Ladies Choirs organised a fundraising concert at Kettering Arts Centre to raise funds in memory […]
Read More
Celebrating 25 years with Dr Ava Easton
24 April 2025
Today marks 25 years since Ava started working for Encephalitis International and what a 25 years it has been! To help celebrate this incredible milestone we thought we should share some of her career highlights and successes (trust us there are many more!) – not in any particular order! Earlier this year the World Health […]
Read MoreThe What, Why, When and Where of Will Writing
1 April 2025
Thousands of non-profits like Encephalitis International rely on legacies – gifts that people have left in their will – to fund their charitable work across the world. Encephalitis International dedicates campaigns to promote leaving a gift in your will and has webpages featuring this area of our fundraising: Gift in Will – Leave a Legacy […]
Read More
Improving brain infection diagnostics in India
18 March 2025
By Dr Angel T Miraclin India (Vellore Centre) Co-Investigator, Brain Infections Global Intervention Study Associate Professor, Neurology, Christian Medical College & Hospital, Vellore, India. To view the full paper click here (external link). Brain infections remain a major cause of illness and death, requiring timely and accurate diagnosis for effective treatment. In India, the healthcare […]
Read More
Improving brain infection diagnostics in Malawi
18 March 2025
By Dr Gareth D Lipunga Malawi Study Physician, Brain Infections Global Intervention Study, Study Physician, Malawi-Liverpool-Wellcome Trust Clinical Research Programme & Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital, Blantyre, Malawi. To view the full paper click here (external link). In an effort to improve timely diagnosis and early management of patients with suspected brain infections, we implemented a […]
Read More
Brain infection diagnostics in Brazil and beyond
14 March 2025
By Dr Rafael FO Franca Brazil Principal Investigator, Brain Infections Global Intervention Study Virologist & Group Leader, Fiocruz (Oswaldo Cruz Foundation), and currently Director, Fiocruz São Paulo. To view the full paper click here (external link). Brain infections, including encephalitis and meningitis, pose a serious health challenge, particularly for impoverished populations who are more […]
Read More
Encephalitis International Conference 2024
7 March 2025
The 2024 Encephalitis International Conference was held in person and virtually at the Royal College of Physicians from 2nd – 3rd December 2024. The Encephalitis International Conference is a two-day event that is the largest of its kind. In 2024, the conference brought together 515 delegates across 71 countries, virtually and in person, at the […]
Read More
Criminality in patients with autoimmune encephalitis
28 February 2025
Key points: Study links autoimmune encephalitis to delayed criminal behaviour. Treated patients showed lasting behavioural changes despite reduced antibodies. Delayed treatment may cause permanent brain changes in patients. Introduction Although patients with autoimmune encephalitis respond to immunotherapy, many exhibit neurobehavioural features. A 2024 retrospective study examined five cases of criminal behaviour among autoimmune encephalitis (AE) patients seen […]
Read More
World Encephalitis Day History
14 February 2025
World Encephalitis Day is the biggest day of the year for people whose lives have been affected by inflammation of the brain. Encephalitis International established this global awareness day on the 22nd February 2014. Since its launch in 2014, World Encephalitis Day has reached 628 million people globally in our efforts to grow global awareness […]
Read More
GENIE – A Portuguese association for autoimmune encephalitis research and care
7 February 2025
By Ana Vasconcelos (GENIE member) On January 24th, at the University of Coimbra (Portugal), we celebrated the official launch and inaugural meeting of GENIE – Grupo de Estudos em Neuroimunologia e Encefalites (translated as Neuroimmunology and Encephalitis Study Group). GENIE is a Portuguese association dedicated to raising awareness, conducting and disseminating research, fostering collaborations, and […]
Read More
Experts call for unified classification system for tick-borne encephalitis
17 January 2025
A recent paper involving Encephalitis International’s CEO Ava Easton has highlighted a critical gap in how we classify tick-borne encephalitis virus (TBEV) infections. The research, published in the scientific journal ‘Ticks and Tick-borne Diseases’, brought together an expert panel of European clinicians and scientists with diverse expertise in TBEV infection to create a consensus statement […]
Read More
Support Encephalitis International - Donate Online
6 January 2025
We’re very excited to be launching our new online donation form! This is hosted on our website and will allow our supporters to make a donation in a number of currencies: Great British Pounds, £GBP Euros, €EUR Australian Dollars, $AUD American Dollars, $USD Payments can be made using a credit / debit card, or via […]
Read More
Fundraising for Encephalitis International
20 December 2024
As we near the end of 2024, we want to congratulate all our wonderful fundraisers – over 300 across the world – who have spread awareness and raised vital funds throughout the year. Their generosity ensures we can continue to support the encephalitis community into the future. Our 99 Brain Gamers spent September challenging themselves with […]
Read More
David Brown 1952-2024
11 December 2024
It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Professor David W G Brown, MBBS MSc FRCPath FFPH. An internationally renowned public health virologist, David served with distinction as director of the Health Protection Agency’s Virus Reference Department from 2004 until his retirement in 2012, and a visiting professor at LSHTM. After training […]
Read More
Encephalitis International and PPI (Patient & Public Involvement)
5 December 2024
What is PPI? PPI stands for Patient and Public Involvement in research. It describes how patients and the public can participate in medical research. It is important that, where possible, patients and the public have the opportunity to be involved in all stages of research. PPI can include: sharing lived experience of encephalitis, as a […]
Read More
Autoimmune causes of seizures and epilepsy
25 November 2024
A seizure is a sudden change in behaviour, movement, and/or consciousness due to abnormal electrical activity in the brain. While 1 in 10 people will have a seizure during their lifetime, only around 1 in 100-200 will develop epilepsy, which means having repeated seizures over time. There are many causes of seizures and epilepsy. However, […]
Read More
Eastern Equine Encephalitis (EEE)
28 October 2024
Key points: EEE is a viral disease transmitted to humans through the bite of infected mosquitoes. EEE virus is rare but has a 30% mortality rate among infected individuals. Half of survivors have brain or nerve problems. There is no human vaccine for EEE – so prevention is crucial. Introduction EEE has been in the […]
Read More