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Chagasic Encephalitis as the Initial Manifestation of AIDS
- Nathan Lambert, MD;
- Brijesh Mehta, MD;
- Ruth Walters, MD; and
- Joseph J. Eron, MD
- From the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC 27599.
Background: Late presentation to care remains common in patients with HIV infection, even in developed countries (1). A patient presenting with neurologic symptoms who has multiple ring-enhancing lesions, a low CD4 cell count, and positive results on serologic tests for Toxoplasma gondii would be presumptively treated for toxoplasmosis encephalitis.
Objective: To describe a case of chagasic meningoencephalitis in a patient with previously undiagnosed AIDS.
Case Report: A previously healthy, 56-year-old heterosexual man presented to the emergency department for progressive leg weakness, malaise, and urinary retention that began 3 weeks earlier. He was originally from southern Mexico but had lived in North Carolina for the past 15 years. Initial physical examination revealed a temperature of 38.5 °C, tachycardia, and distended bladder. The neurologic examination showed flaccid lower extremities, patellar hyperreflexia, and …
This 100-word excerpt has been provided in the absence of an abstract.
