O-04 A retrospective study of central nervous system infections among patients admitted to the department of Internal Medicine, Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation
Author(s):
K Dookram, D Persaud
Year of Presentation:
2024
Objective: To determine the incidence and distribution of CNS infections among patients admitted to the internal
medicine department, GPHC along with the demographic characteristics, comorbidities, presenting signs and symptoms, diagnostic criteria used and outcomes in these cases.
Methods: A retrospective descriptive analysis was conducted on patient chart and microbiologic data extracted for 71 patients admitted over a two-year period. Incidence was calculated and the IBM SPSS analytical software was - cant relationships.
Results: The incidence of CNS infections was 0.673% (673/100,000) with bacterial/viral meningitis being the most common. Male to female ratio was more than 2:1 and Afro-Guyanese accounted for the majority of cases. HIV Infection was the most common comorbidity and altered mental status was the most common presentation. For the lumbar punctures done: there was no growth in more than 80% cases and for imaging studies done: ring-enhanced lesions, meningeal enhancement, and cerebral oedema were each noted in 1 out of 5 cases or less. In terms of outcomes, almost a third of patients died. Of those that survived: 30% remained with neurologic deficits, while 70% recovered completely.
Conclusion: Incidence of CNS infection in this study was 0.673%, more than twice the reported global incidence of 0.389%. Given that HIV Infection is the single most common comorbidity identified in patients hospitalised with CNS infections, it is imperative that all adults with a suspected diagnosis of CNS Infection be tested for HIV.