Neurocognitive performance in patients with AIDS in Brazil: a case-control study

Objective: The objective of the present study was to evaluate the different cognitive domains in a sample of patients with AIDS, taking as a comparison group participants without known HIV infection or AIDS, seen at a referral outpatient facility that provides care to HIV patients in Minas Gerais, Brazil. Method: A total of 110 subjects with AIDS followed up at the Infectious Diseases Outpatient Clinic were studied. The subjects were submitted to neurological and neuropsychological evaluation. Neuropsychological tests were used for the evaluation of cognitive skills; processing speed, working memory, attention, executive function, learning and memory, language and verbal fluency, fine motor abilities and e visuospatial abilities. Results: The comparison of cognitive performance between cases and controls showed significantly statistical differences in all tests employed. The AIDS subjects consistently presenting a worst performance. Conclusions: The results presented herein suggest that subjects with AIDS, independently of their immune status and antiretroviral treatment have worse neurocognitive performance in all domains studied in relation the control group. Key words: HIV, executive function, memory