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Central nervous system pathology in children with aids

A review

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Summary

The neuropathology of AIDS in children shows striking differences to that in adults. Of special interest are the possible effects of HIV intrauterine infection on brain development, and on subsequent myelination. At present, it appears that CNS development in utero is normal, but post-natal myelination is delayed. AIDS encephalopathy and spinal cord pathology are the most frequently encountered CNS disorders and appear to be related to the presence of HIV within the nervous tissue. Opportunistic infections and lymphomas are related to immunosuppression and are less common. Other lesions of vascular or metabolic origin or possibly due to effects of therapy may also occur. Finally it must be emphasised that more than one pathological process may be responsible for symptoms and combinations of lesions may occur, e,g. AIDS encephalopathy combined with CNS lymphoma or CMV encephalitis, giving rise to complex or multiphasic neurological illness.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Neuropathology Laboratory, Pathology Department, Cork Regional Hospital, Wilton, Cork

    Catherine Keohane

  2. Neuropathology Laboratory, Pathology Department, Hopital Henri Mondor, Creteil, France

    Francoise Gray

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  1. Catherine Keohane
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  2. Francoise Gray
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Keohane, C., Gray, F. Central nervous system pathology in children with aids. I.J.M.S. 160, 277–281 (1991). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02948412

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