title: Exclusion of leukaemic meningitis by quantitation of T and B lymphocytes in cerebrospinal fluid.
abstract: Involvement of the central nervous system (CNS) in chronic lymphatic leukaemia (CLL) is rare. However, when a patient with CLL presented with meningeal symptoms and a high CSF lymphocyte count in the absence of identifiable infection, meningeal leukaemia was considered the most likely diagnosis. Subsequent quantitation of T and B lymphocytes in the blood and CSF was found to be a most valuable aid in excluding the diagnosis, and later a cryptococcal infection was proven. This case is reported to draw attention to the value of T and B lymphocyte quantitation where difficulty is experienced in interpretation of cells in CSF in patients with leukaemia or lymphoma.
mesh_terms: D001402:B-Lymphocytes; D002555:Cerebrospinal Fluid / Q000166:cytology*; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D006801:Humans; D007945:Leukemia, Lymphoid / Q000134:cerebrospinal fluid / Q000175:diagnosis*; D007958:Leukocyte Count; D008297:Male; D008577:Meningeal Neoplasms / Q000134:cerebrospinal fluid / Q000175:diagnosis*; D008581:Meningitis / Q000134:cerebrospinal fluid / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000209:etiology; D008875:Middle Aged; D013601:T-Lymphocytes