[Aids neurologic manifestations in childhood].

INTRODUCTION

Children with AIDS get infected mainly by vertical transmission.

DEVELOPMENT: That was what happened in 90% of the cases in a series of 340 HIV+ children followed at Hospital de Clínicas de Porto Alegre, Brazil. Currently, after the use of prophylactic treatment during pregnancy and the six first weeks of life, our transmission rate is 3% to 4%. The incidence of neurologic complications in the vertical transmission group was 49% in our prospective series, and due either to immunosuppression or primary neurological disease. Neurologic changes secondary to HIV constitute a complex syndrome, manifested by various degrees of cognitive, motor and behavioral delay. Encephalopathy can be either progressive or static. In our series, encephalopathy occurred in 32.5% of cases, developmental delay in 42.5%, seizures in 6%, speech delay in 5%, headaches in 2.5% and behavioral disorders in 2%. Central nervous system infections happened in 33.8% of our cases: acute bacterial infections in 11%, cytomegalovirus in 6.8%, toxoplasmosis in 5.9%, cryptococcal in 5%, tuberculous in 3.8% and syphilis in 1.3%. Hemorrhagic cerebrovascular accidents were seen in 2.5% of our cases, and peripheral neuropathy in 5%. Seventy percent of our cases had abnormalities in the CSF, 75% in brain CT scans and 45% in EEGs.

CONCLUSIONS

Treatment of children with AIDS and neurologic manifestations was based on specific drugs aimed at controlling viral replication. Best response was obtained with combined use of AZT and other anti-retroviral neuro-protective.