MORTALITY AFTER CLINICAL MANAGEMENT OF AIDS-ASSOCIATED CRYPTOCOCCAL MENINGITIS IN KENYA

Cryptococcal meningitis (CM) is an increasingly prevalent infection among HIV/AIDS patients and is becoming a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in Africa. The short-term prognosis and management of patients with CM may be improved by identifying factors leading to mortality in patients with CM.

To assess the clinical management and mortality associated with cryptococcal meningitis (CM) in patients with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) in Kenya.

A retrospective study.

Kenyatta National Hospital and Mbagathi District Hospital, between August 2008 and March 2009.

Seventy six HIV-infected patients confirmed to be CM positive.

Results show that 30 (40%) of 76 patients diagnosed with CM died during hospitalisation after a median hospital stay of ten days (range, 2-73 days). Significant predictors of mortality in the univariate model were Mycobacterium tuberculosis (TB) co-infection (P = 0.04), having been diagnosed with a co-morbid condition such as diabetes mellitus, oral candidiasis and hypertension (P = 0.01), and a low median CD4+ T lymphocyte count (P < 0.001). The multivariable model revealed that male sex, previous or current anti-retroviral therapy (ART) at admission and CD4+ T lymphocyte count less than 50 were significant predictors of mortality. Conversely, a minimum of two weeks of amphotericin B treatment (P < 0.001), initiation of ART (P = 0.007) and monitoring of creatinine and electrolyte levels (P = 0.02) were significantly associated with survival in the univariate model.

CM-associated mortality in Kenya is high; there is an opportunity to improve the management and the short-term outcomes of hospitalised HIV positive patients with CM in Kenya.