Cryptococcal Meningitis

Back to HIV/AIDS page

Cryptococcal Meningitis is an infection of the lining of the brain and spinal cord. The fungus that causes this infection is found in soil. You can get it by breathing in dust. Symptoms include headache, nausea, fever, fatigue, irritability, sensitivity to light, stiff neck, change in mental state, and hallucinations.This is a serious disease that can be deadly, so get treatment right away. Your risk for this problem increases when your CD4 cell counts are below 100. It is treated with drugs to kill the fungus, like fluconazole or a combination of amphotericin B and flucytosine. These drugs can cause side effects. Amphotericin B can hurt your kidneys. Even after treatment, the fungus can come back. You might need to take drugs all the time to prevent it from coming back. So, it's best to get treatment early, when there's a chance to use drugs that won't give you these side effects.