Subacute sclerosing panencephalitis (SSPE) is a chronic progressive encephalitis of childhood and young adults. The atypical clinical presentations of SSPE are myriad leading to diagnostic dilemmas. This case report illustrates a 5 year old boy who presented with short history of cognitive decline and psychiatric symptoms, and movement disorders such as dystonia, orofacial dyskinesias mimicking N-methyl d- aspartate receptor encephalitis (NMDAR). Subsequently he was diagnosed to be a case of SSPE on the basis of EEG.

Subacute sclerosing panencephalitis (SSPE) is a chronic progressive encephalitis of childhood and young adults. The atypical clinical presentations of SSPE are myriad leading to diagnostic dilemmas. This case report illustrates a 5 year old boy who presented with short history of cognitive decline and psychiatric symptoms, and movement disorders such as dystonia, orofacial dyskinesias mimicking N-methyl d- aspartate receptor encephalitis (NMDAR). Subsequently he was diagnosed to be a case of SSPE on the basis of EEG.