DEVELOPMENT OF SUBTLE NEUROLOGICAL SIGNS AFTER SYSTEMIC - ILLNESS IN HIV-INFECTED INDIVIDUALS

Thirty human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infected individuals entered a longitudinal study without signs of dysfunction of the central nerv ous system (CNS). Nine of these individuals developed a systemic illne ss between study visits, and 7 of these 9 patients (78 %) had neurolog ical signs at the next examination (e.g., action-intention tremors, ab normal gait, release signs, abnormal deep tendon reflexes). Only 2/21 (9.5 %) of the subjects who did not develop systemic illness showed su ch signs. These data are consistent with the hypothesis that other fac tors (e.g. cytokines) as well as the HIV may cause subtle CNS dysfunct ion.