Clothes Designer Perry Ellis Has Encephalitis

Sportswear designer Perry Ellis was in serious condition Friday at the New York Hospital-Cornell Medical Center suffering from encephalitis, a hospital official said.

Ellis, 46, was admitted to the hospital on May 8 a few hours after he appeared at the New York presentation of his fall-winter collection. He remained in satisfactory condition until Thursday when it was downgraded to serious but stable condition, Amanda Manough, his publicist, said.

He did not take the customary walk down the runway at the end of the show.

The designer of elegant sportswear, who has been ill for several months, appeared pale and gaunt at an AIDS fund-raiser sponsored by the fashion, fragrance and cosmetic industries in New York on April 30.

Encephalitis, commonly called “sleeping sickness,” causes an inflammation of the brain. It is caused by a virus, and victims sometimes suffer from stupor and delirium.

Ellis, a Virginia native who once sported a signature ponytail, is a four-time Coty Award winner.