Allied Health Rehabilitation of A Child With Anti-N-Methyl D-Aspartate (NMDA) Receptor Encephalitis – A Case Report on Presentation and Management

This case report presents a review of a twelve-year-old female patient, with anti-NMDAR encephalitis who was referred for inpatient rehabilitation.This report describes therapy input and functional change over phases of recovery.A retrospective chart review was completed including collection of therapist activity, length of stay and functional change.The child's recovery appeared to reflect the stages of recovery described in the literature.Functional change, therapeutic strategies and clinician time are described.During the initial recovery phase, functional change was limited compared to the later phases where the rate of change was higher.This case highlights the need to evaluate the timing and model of rehabilitation, and for multidisciplinary team collaboration.Considering a modified model of rehabilitation during early phases of recovery may be useful to optimise patient outcomes and clinical resources.Use of functional outcome measures may support teams to evaluate services, optimise patient outcomes and resources.