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Query: UMLS:C0018681 (headache)
 56,091 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

HIV-positive patients are prone to many illnesses due to their weakened immune systems. Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia (PCP) and tuberculosis (TB) both cause respiratory difficulties, as well as fatigue, scratchy throat and weight loss. Cytomegalovirus (CMV) causes changes in vision. Cryptococcal meningitis and toxoplasmosis share symptoms of acute headaches, confusion and memory loss. Kaposi's Sarcoma (KS) causes red and purple skin legions to appear. Candidiasis symptoms reveal themselves in oral, esophagal and vaginal forms. Other AIDS-related diseases and symptoms are discussed.
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PMID:[Self-detection of symptoms]. 1136 15

Cryptococcosis, caused by Cryptococcus neoformans, is the most common life-threatening AIDS-related fungal infection. The infection can occur in any organ of the body, although meningitis is its most frequent form. Symptoms of cryptococcal meningitis appear gradually and generally include headache, fever, or malaise. Symptoms may also include memory loss, lethargy, and personality changes. Isolation of the pathogen is done by using microscopy of the cerebrospinal fluid or by testing the serum antigen titer. Appropriate therapy includes amphotericin B or triazole antifungals. Patients with elevated intracranial pressure may be treated by draining cerebrospinal fluid (about 30 ml) daily. Other antifungal agents are being investigated.
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PMID:Cryptococcosis. 1136 41

A new study to be presented at the 12th World AIDS Conference demonstrates that IL-2 dramatically restores immune function in people with AIDS. The study group included patients with fewer than 200 CD4-cells and a history of severe AIDS-related complications including CMV retinitis, PCP, wasting syndrome, KS, and Cryptococcal meningitis. In the study, CD4 counts rose 96 percent when IL-2 was added to protease inhibitor therapy. The increases were sustained, and naive cells increased as well. Most common side effects included fever, fatigue, sinus congestion, and headache; most side effects stopped within 24 hours of completing the treatment cycle. The findings represent new hope for people whose immune systems are substantially compromised. Contact information is provided.
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PMID:New data on IL-2. 1136 33

Fungal infections in renal transplant recipients are less common than bacterial infections; however, the morbidity from fungal infections is high. There is limited information in the literature concerning post-transplantation cryptococcal infection due to environmental exposure of patients living in high-risk areas. We report three patients who were diagnosed with cryptococcal meningitis after kidney transplantation. Cryptococcal titers prior to transplant surgery were negative in all three patients. These patients all lived in rural areas and demonstrated evidence of environmental exposure leading to subsequent cryptococcal meningitis. All patients had exposure to pigeon and chicken excreta and, after treatment, two patients are alive and well with excellent allograft function. The third patient has marginal renal function but is currently not on dialysis. Early diagnosis is essential for salvage from these potentially lethal infections. Intense headache was a prominent feature in the clinical presentation of our patients, and should signal the need for early sampling and culture of spinal fluid. Meningismus was not present in any of our patients, even when other systemic symptoms were identified. We recommend a high index of suspicion post-transplantation for all patients who may have environmental or occupational exposure to cryptococcus. If infection is detected quickly and treatment instituted promptly, patient recovery and allograft survival are possible. Long-term therapy with fluconazole, a non-nephrotoxic agent, should permit eradication of the infection with preservation of kidney function.
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PMID:Cryptococcal meningitis in renal transplant patients associated with environmental exposure. 1142 91

A 39-year-old woman had developed systemic lupus erythematosus(SLE) at the age of 29. She had a long history of immunosuppressant therapies such as corticosteroid. On admission, she presented a headache due to the cryptococcal meningitis which was confirmed by lumbar puncture. Combined medications of amphotericin B and fluconazole were not effective, and combined amphotericin B and flucytosine were replaced. Prednisolone and methotrexate had been tapered gradually. Fifty days after the initial treatment for meningitis Cryptococcal neoformans was not observed in the cerebrospinal fluid. Sixty days after the treatment, thrombocytopenia was observed with positive lupus anticoagulant and anticardiolipin antibody. Following which, thrombophlebitis occurred in the left brachium. We suggest that the provoked pathoimmunological reaction such as antiphospholipid antibody syndrome during the treatment for meningitis needs to be cared during the course of SLE.
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PMID:[A case of SLE presenting the features of antiphospholipid antibody syndrome during a treatment for complicated cryptococcal meningitis]. 1151 89

Therapy of cryptococcal meningitis has been focused primarily on optimizing the antifungal regimen to improve the previously high treatment failure rates. Until recently, relatively little attention has been paid to the impact of increased intracranial pressure, which is a frequent problem that complicates management of patients with cryptococcal meningitis. Patients with elevated baseline opening pressures have higher titers of cerebrospinal fluid cryptococcal capsular polysaccharide antigen, more frequent headaches, meningismus, papilledema, hearing loss, and pathologic reflexes, as well as increased morbidity and mortality compared with those patients with normal opening pressures. Optimal therapy has not yet been firmly established, but the diagnostic evaluation and available treatment options are reviewed here, including frequent high volume lumbar punctures, lumbar drains, ventriculoperitoneal shunting, and corticosteroids.
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PMID:Management of Increased Intracranial Pressure in Cryptococcal Meningitis. 1212 10

We conducted a trial of oral acetazolamide for the treatment of cryptococcal meningitis in 22 Thai adults with headache and an opening cerebrospinal fluid pressure of >/=200 mm H(2)0. The trial was terminated prematurely because patients who received acetazolamide developed significantly lower venous bicarbonate levels and higher chloride levels and had more-frequent serious adverse events than did subjects who received placebo.
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PMID:A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of acetazolamide for the treatment of elevated intracranial pressure in cryptococcal meningitis. 1256 20

The US Centers for Disease Control in 1982 listed conditions and infections then associated with AIDS. That case definition, used as a model for many countries, was designed primarily for epidemiologic surveillance and now includes more than 20 conditions. The definition, however, requires diagnostic and laboratory technologies which are not always available in developing countries. The World Health Organization (WHO) therefore published the Bangui definition in 1985 which uses clinical criteria alone. Many developing countries have adapted this definition to the types of pathogens they encounter domestically. According to the AIDS clinical definition, the presence of generalized Kaposi sarcoma or cryptococcal meningitis is sufficient for the diagnosis of AIDS. AIDS is also diagnosed if at least two major signs and one minor sign are present in the absence of known causes of immunosuppression such as malnutrition. Major signs are fever for more than one month, loss of more than 10% of body weight, and diarrhea for more than one month. Minor signs include cough for more than one month, generalized pruritic dermatitis, recurrent herpes zoster or shingles, oropharyngeal candidiasis or thrush, chronic or aggressive ulcerative herpes simplex, and persistent generalized lymphadenopathy. WHO has also developed criteria for diagnosing symptomatic HIV infection as an aid to individual case management. These criteria, however, are not intended to replace the Bangui AIDS case definitions developed for epidemiological purposes. The diagnosis of symptomatic HIV infection is made through physical examination and the taking of a very detailed case history. In so doing, there may be cardinal, characteristic, and/or associated findings. Cardinal findings of HIV infection are Kaposi sarcoma, oesophageal candidiasis, cytomegalovirus retinitis, Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia, and Toxoplasma encephalitis. Characteristic findings include oral thrush in a patient not taking antibiotics; hairy leukoplakia; cryptococcal meningitis; miliary, extrapulmonary,, or non-cavity pulmonary tuberculosis; current or past herpes zoster or shingles; severe prurigo; Kaposi sarcoma of a less than generalized or rapidly progressive nature; and high-grade B-cell extranodal lymphoma. Finally, associated findings in the absence of any other obvious cause of immunosuppression are recent and/or explained weight loss of more than 10% of body weight; fever for more than one month; diarrhea for more than one month; ulcers for more than one month; cough for more than one month; neurological complaints or findings, peripheral neuropathy, dementia, and progressively worsening headache; generalized lymphadenopathy; previously unseen drug reactions; and severe or recurrent skin infections. A person has symptomatic HIV infection if there are one or more cardinal findings, two or more characteristics findings, one characteristic finding and two or more associated findings, three or more associated findings together with any risk factors, or two associated findings together with a positive HIV test result. Malawi, Zambia, Thailand, and the English-speaking Caribbean are adapting these criteria for national use.
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PMID:Diagnosing symptomatic HIV infection and AIDS in adults. 1228 34

Cryptococcal meningitis has been reported to be an important cause of morbidity and mortality in renal transplant recipients. However, additional studies of recipients of other organ transplants suggested that these patients might be at low risk for cryptococcal meningitis. We examined the incidence and clinical features of cryptococcal meningitis among different groups of organ transplant patients at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. From January 1989 through July 1999, 28 patients were diagnosed with cryptococcal meningitis among 5,521 transplant recipients. These included liver (11/2,539), heart (8/372), kidney (7/2,122), lung (1/432), and small bowel (1/56) recipients. The incidence of cryptococcal meningitis was higher in heart and small bowel recipients compared to other transplant populations (P = 0.005). The cryptococcal meningitis-related mortality in transplant recipients was 50% and was associated with altered mental status (P = 0.001), absence of headache (P = 0.02), and liver failure (P = 0.002). Multivariable analysis indicated that liver failure was the only independent risk factor for poor prognosis (P = 0.043). All cases of liver failure occurred among liver transplant recipients. Cryptococcal meningitis is associated with significant mortality among organ transplant recipients. The presence of allograft failure in liver transplant recipients with cryptococcal meningitis may be an indicator of poor prognosis in this patient population.
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PMID:Cryptococcal meningitis: an analysis among 5,521 consecutive organ transplant recipients. 1253 60

Cryptococcal meningitis is an uncommon but often fatal complication of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). We report on a 13-year-old girl with SLE using high-dose prednisolone for several months, presented to us with low grade fever, intermittent vomiting and headache. Physical examination, including papilloedema and meningeal irritation, was unremarkable. Serum and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) cryptococcal antigen titer was 1: 128 by latex agglutination method. CSF culture yielded Cryptococcus neoformans. We used amphotericin B deoxycholate (a cumulative dose of 1.95 gm) and fluconazole (200 mg day-1) for 6 weeks. Clinical response was good. Then, we continued fluconazole 200 mg per qd as suppressive therapy for thirty-four months. There were no neurological sequelae or relapse after 20-month follow-up. Timely diagnosis and effective antifungal therapy could improve the prognosis of cryptococcal meningitis in SLE patients.
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PMID:Cryptococcal meningitis in pediatric systemic lupus erythematosus. 1287 Feb 7


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