Cryptococcal Meningitis in a HIV Positive Patient

Cryptococcal meningitis is a major opportunistic infection and a leading cause of mortality in patients infected with HIV in most of the developing world1. Clinical presentation is usually sub-acute and typical features of inflammation like fever may be absent. Once the cryptococcal meningitis is suspected, the diagnosis is straight forward in most patients due to the availability of highly sensitive and specific tests1. Amphotericin B is a toxic drug even though highly active against cryptococci. Toxic effects of amphotericin B can be minimized by close monitoring of the patient and adopting certain precautionary measures. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.4038/sljv.v2i1.5401 Sri Lanka Journal of Venereology Vol.2(1) 2009 pp.22-24