{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,31]],"date-time":"2026-03-31T12:01:39Z","timestamp":1774958499826,"version":"3.50.1"},"reference-count":50,"publisher":"Frontiers Media SA","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2021,2,4]],"date-time":"2021-02-04T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1612396800000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["frontiersin.org"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Front. Neurol."],"abstract":"<jats:p><jats:bold>Background:<\/jats:bold> Progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML) caused by JCV is a rare but frequently fatal disease of the central nervous system, usually affecting immunocompromised individuals. Our study aims to expand the data on patient characteristics, diagnosis, clinical course, possible PML-directed treatment, and outcome of patients with PML at a German tertiary-care hospital.<\/jats:p><jats:p><jats:bold>Methods:<\/jats:bold>In this single-center observational cohort study, 37 consecutive patients with a confirmed diagnosis of PML seen at the University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf from 2013 until 2019 were retrospectively analyzed by chart review with a special focus on demographics, risk factors, and clinical aspects as well as PML-directed treatment and survival.<\/jats:p><jats:p><jats:bold>Results:<\/jats:bold>We identified 37 patients with definite, probable, and possible PML diagnosis. 36 patients (97%) had underlying immunosuppressive disorders such as HIV\/AIDS (<jats:italic>n<\/jats:italic> = 17; 46%), previous treatment with monoclonal antibodies (<jats:italic>n<\/jats:italic> = 6; 16%), hematological or oncological malignancies (<jats:italic>n<\/jats:italic> = 6; 16%), sarcoidosis (<jats:italic>n<\/jats:italic> = 5; 14%), solid organ transplantation (<jats:italic>n<\/jats:italic> = 1; 3%), and diagnosis of mixed connective tissue disease (<jats:italic>n<\/jats:italic> = 1; 3%). In only one patient no evident immunocompromised condition was detected (<jats:italic>n<\/jats:italic> = 1; 3%). Treatment attempts to improve the outcome of PML were reported in 13 patients (<jats:italic>n<\/jats:italic> = 13; 35%). Twenty seven percent of patients were lost to follow-up (<jats:italic>n<\/jats:italic> = 10). Twenty four-month survival rate after diagnosis of PML was 56% (<jats:italic>n<\/jats:italic> = 15).<\/jats:p><jats:p><jats:bold>Conclusion:<\/jats:bold> This interdisciplinary retrospective study describes epidemiology, risk factors, clinical course, and treatment trials in patients with PML at a German tertiary-care hospital. Acquired immunosuppression due to HIV-1 constituted the leading cause of PML in this monocenter cohort.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3389\/fneur.2021.632535","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2021,2,4]],"date-time":"2021-02-04T07:59:11Z","timestamp":1612425551000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/crossmark-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":17,"title":["Clinical Presentation and Disease Course of 37 Consecutive Cases of Progressive Multifocal Leukoencephalopathy (PML) at a German Tertiary-Care Hospital: A Retrospective Observational Study"],"prefix":"10.3389","volume":"12","author":[{"given":"Lisa M.","family":"Graf","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Sina 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