The bilateral thalamic and cerebral lesions are typical of acute necrotizing encephalitis of childhood. The patient received medical treatment, mainly IV immunoglobulin, and showed significant regression of the disease clinically and on imaging . 

Other differential diagnoses could be acute disseminated encephalomyelitis (ADEM), which was excluded clinically by a short time gap (5 days) between upper respiratory tract infection and neurological manifestations. Also viral encephalitis which was excluded by lumbar puncture and culture.