Relation of cerebrospinal fluid/plasma HIV-RNA discordance with neurocognitive impairment

Neurological involvement is common in patients infected with HIV. The effectiveness of antiretroviral drugs in lowering the levels of HIV-RNA in cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) is limited by their inability to cross the blood-brain barrier. Discordance in CSF/plasma HIV-RNA levels may have a bearing on the progression of neurological disease in these patients. We report a woman with subacute neurocognitive impairment and abnormal findings on brain MRI, in whom there was a discordance between CSF/plasma HIV-RNA levels. The patient improved after a change in her highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) regimen. We also reviewed the available literature on the subject and found seven articles describing 27 patients.