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Federal domestic HIV/AIDS information and resources can be found at www.AIDS.gov![]() |
AIDS is primarily an immune system disorder caused by the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), but it can also affect the nervous system. HIV does not appear to directly invade nerve cells but it jeopardizes their health and function, causing symptoms such as confusion, forgetfulness, behavioral changes, severe headaches, progressive weakness, loss of sensation in the arms and legs, stroke, cognitive motor impairment, or damage to the peripheral nerves. Other complications that can occur as a result of HIV infection or the drugs used to treat it include pain, seizures, shingles, spinal cord problems, lack of coordination, difficult or painful swallowing, anxiety disorder, depression, fever, vision loss, gait disorders, destruction of brain tissue, and coma. Other AIDS-related nervous system disorders may be caused by certain cancers or by illnesses that would not otherwise affect people with healthy immune systems.
Among the most common neurological complications are: AIDS dementia complex, causing symptoms such as encephalitis (inflammation of the brain), behavioral changes, and a gradual decline in cognitive function; central nervous system lymphomas, cancerous tumors that either begin in the brain or result from a cancer that has spread from another site in the body; cryptococcal meningitis; cytomegalovirus infections; herpes virus infections; neuropathy; neurosyphilis; progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML); and psychological and neuropsychiatric disorders.
No single treatment can cure the neurological complications of AIDS. Some disorders require aggressive therapy while others
are treated symptomatically.
Medicines range from analgesics sold over the counter to antiepileptic drugs, opiates, corticosteroids, and some classes of
antidepressants. Other treatments include radiation therapy or chemotherapy to kill or shrink cancerous brain tumors that
may be caused by HIV, antifungal or antimalarial drugs to combat certain bacterial infections, and penicillin to treat neurosyphilis.
Aggressive antiretroviral therapy is used to treat AIDS dementia complex, PML, and cytomegalovirus encephalitis. HAART, or
highly active antiretroviral therapy, combines at least three drugs to reduce the amount of virus circulating in the blood
and may also delay the start of some infections.
The overall prognosis for individuals with AIDS in recent years has improved significantly because of new drugs and treatments.
AIDS clinicians often fail to recognize neurological complications of AIDS. Those who suspect they are having neurological
complications should be sure to discuss these with their doctor.
Within the Federal government, the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS), one part of the National
Institutes of Health (NIH), supports research on the neurological consequences of AIDS. The NINDS works closely with its
sister agency, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), which has primary responsibility for research
related to HIV and AIDS.
Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation 1140 Connecticut Avenue, NW Suite 200 Washington, DC 20036 DC@pedaids.org http://www.pedaids.org Tel: 202-296-9165 888-499-HOPE (-4673) Fax: 202-296-9185 |
amfAR, The Foundation for AIDS Research 120 Wall Street 13th Floor New York, NY 10005-3908 information@amfar.org http://www.amfar.org Tel: 212-806-1600 Fax: 212-806-1601 |
National Association of People with AIDS 8401 Colesville Road Suite 750 Silver Spring, MD 20910 info@napwa.org http://www.napwa.org Tel: 240-247-0880 Fax: 240-247-0574 |
National NeuroAIDS Tissue Consortium 401 N. Washington Street Suite 700 Rockville, MD 20850 nntc@emmes.com http://www.hivbrainbanks.org Tel: 866-668-2272 301-251-1161 ext. 186 Fax: 301-576-4597 |
National Prevention Information Network Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, DHHS P.O. Box 6003 Rockville, MD 20849-6003 info@cdcnpin.org http://www.cdcnpin.org Tel: 301-562-1098 800-458-5231 Fax: 888-282-7681 |
National Institute of Allergy and Infectious
Diseases (NIAID) National Institutes of Health, DHHS 6610 Rockledge Drive, MSC 6612 Bethesda, MD 20892-6612 http://www.niaid.nih.gov Tel: 301-496-5717 |
AIDSInfo (AIDS Information Service) P.O. Box 6303 Rockville, MD 20849-6303 ContactUs@aidsinfo.gov http://aidsinfo.nih.gov Tel: 301-519-0459 800-HIV-0440 (448-0440) TTY: 888-480-3739 Fax: 301-519-6616 |
Prepared by:
Office of Communications and Public Liaison
National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke
National Institutes of Health
Bethesda, MD 20892
NINDS health-related material is provided for information purposes only and does not necessarily represent endorsement by or an official position of the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke or any other Federal agency. Advice on the treatment or care of an individual patient should be obtained through consultation with a physician who has examined that patient or is familiar with that patient's medical history.
All NINDS-prepared information is in the public domain and may be freely copied. Credit to the NINDS or the NIH is appreciated.
Last updated August 07, 2009