title: Levels of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 RNA in cerebrospinal fluid correlate with AIDS dementia stage.
abstract: The relationship between the presence and severity of AIDS dementia complex (ADC) and the levels of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) RNA in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) were assessed. Nineteen patients with ADC (stages 1-3), 6 without ADC (group 1), and 10 (group 2) without ADC but with cryptococcal meningitis or progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy were studied. There was a significant relationship between increasing CSF virus burden and ADC severity (P = .0006) but not with plasma burden and ADC severity. In group 2, CSF HIV-1 RNA levels in patients with cryptococcal meningitis were elevated. These results show that CSF HIV-1 RNA concentrations correlate well with ADC severity but may also be increased by central nervous system infections, such as cryptococcal meningitis.
authors.affiliation: Department of HIV Medicine, St. Vincent's Hospital, Sydney, Australia.
authors.forename: B J
authors.initials: BJ
authors.lastname: Brew
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Pemberton
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Cunningham
authors.forename: M G
authors.initials: MG
authors.lastname: Law
mesh_terms: D015526:AIDS Dementia Complex / Q000134:cerebrospinal fluid*; D015497:HIV-1 / Q000235:genetics*; D006801:Humans; D012367:RNA, Viral / Q000134:cerebrospinal fluid*
chemical_list: D012367:RNA, Viral