• African health sciences · Jun 2012

    Prevalence of cryptococcosis among HIV-infected patients in Yaounde, Cameroon.

    • J P Dzoyem, F A Kechia, G P Ngaba, P K Lunga, and P J Lohoue.
    • Faculty of Science, University of Dschang, Cameroon. jpdzoyem@yahoo.fr
    • Afr Health Sci. 2012 Jun 1; 12 (2): 129133129-33.

    BackgroundCryptococcus neoformans is encapsulated yeast which causes life-threatening infections in up to 40% of AIDS patients in Africa.ObjectiveTo investigate the prevalence of cryptococcosis among HIV infected patients in Yaounde.MethodsIn a hospital-based surveillance study of cryptococcosis, the colonization of Cerebrospinal Fluid (CSF), urine and blood sample by C. neoformans was evaluated by direct microscopic examination and culture techniques. Data obtained were then analyzed based on the medical records of the patients.ResultsAmong the 105 patients sampled for the study, the CD4 counts varied between 31 and 304 lymphocytes/mm(3). Direct specimens examination (n= 294) in India ink preparations revealed polysaccharide capsule in 25 (8.5%) of the samples. Upon culture, 29 (9.86 %) samples were positive of C. neoformans (23 from the CSFs and 6 from the urine). All the positive samples were obtained from patients who were not on Antiretroviral Therapy (ART). Meningo-encephalitis symptoms were observed in 13 patients with C. neoformans in CSFs.ConclusionThis study reveals that cryptococcosis is rife in AIDS patients in Yaounde. Therefore, to minimize the death toll, we recommend that its routine check should be integrated in the management of HIV/AIDS patients.

      Pubmed     Copy Citation     Plaintext  

      Add institutional full text...

    Notes

     
    Knowledge, pearl, summary or comment to share?
    300 characters remaining
    help        
    You can also include formatting, links, images and footnotes in your notes
    • Simple formatting can be added to notes, such as *italics*, _underline_ or **bold**.
    • Superscript can be denoted by <sup>text</sup> and subscript <sub>text</sub>.
    • Numbered or bulleted lists can be created using either numbered lines 1. 2. 3., hyphens - or asterisks *.
    • Links can be included with: [my link to pubmed](http://pubmed.com)
    • Images can be included with: ![alt text](https://bestmedicaljournal.com/study_graph.jpg "Image Title Text")
    • For footnotes use [^1](This is a footnote.) inline.
    • Or use an inline reference [^1] to refer to a longer footnote elseweher in the document [^1]: This is a long footnote..

    hide…

What will the 'Medical Journal of You' look like?

Start your free 21 day trial now.

We guarantee your privacy. Your email address will not be shared.