Acute meningoencephalomyelitis due to varicella-zoster virus in an AIDS patient: report of a case and review of the literature

• Published in: Revista da Sociedade Brasileira de Medicina Tropical
• Main Authors: Marcelo Corti, Norberto Trione, María Florencia Villafañe, Daniel Risso, Claudio Yampolsky, Lilia Mamanna
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Sociedade Brasileira de Medicina Tropical (SBMT) 2011
• Subjects: Vírus varicela-zoster; Meningoencefalomielite; AIDS; Arctic medicine. Tropical medicine; RC955-962; Arctic
• Online Access: https://doi.org/10.1590/S0037-86822011000600026; https://doaj.org/article/bd89b5a713f444b2aa121721e7d60b63

Varicella-zoster virus (VZV) meningoencephalomyelitis is a rare but severe neurological complication of VZV reactivation in immunocompromised patients. We report the case of an HIV-infected individual who developed an acute and severe meningoencephalomyelitis accompanied by a disseminated cutaneous eruption due to VZV. The presence of VZV DNA in cerebrospinal fluid was confirmed by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) technique. The patient started undergoing an intravenous acyclovir therapy with a mild recovery of neurological manifestations. Varicella-zoster virus should be included as a cause of acute meningoencephalomyelitis in patients with AIDS. Early diagnosis followed by specific therapy should modify the rapid and fulminant course for this kind of patients.