CORRELATION OF MRI AND NEUROPATHOLOGY IN AIDS

Objective--To assess the correlation between findings on radiological and neuropathological examinations of the brain. Methods--The formalin fixed brains of 19 patients who had died of AIDS were examined by MRI and neuropathology. Results--The rate of identification of cerebral a trophy was similar radiologically and neuropathologically. However, on ly in half of these cases were the two examinations concordant in the diagnosis. Furthermore, in the 15 brains which had radiological diffus e white matter lesions, the underlying pathology was heterogeneous. Co nclusion--The possible reasons for the inconsistencies, and their rele vance to the interpretation of imaging studies, are discussed. The stu dy suggests that the qualitative identification of atrophy in the post mortem brain is problematical and that diffuse white matter lesions se en on MRI are not indicative of a specific pathological process.