Psychosis From the Immune System: The Strange Case of Anti-NMDA Receptor Encephalitis

Imagine developing what appears to be schizophrenia almost overnight, only for doctors to discover that your immune system may be attacking receptors in your brain. Anti-NMDA receptor encephalitis provides one of medicine’s most remarkable examples of neurological disease presenting through psychiatric symptoms. The condition also raises a fascinating question: how often can changes in the brain masquerade as changes in personality?