The association between headache presentation, normal examination and neuroimaging findings: a retrospective analysis of patients presenting to a tertiary referral centre.

Background: There is a high worldwide burden of headaches. Selection of patients with headaches for neuroimaging, in the absence of traditional red flags, is imperative in guiding further management.

Objectives: Determine the yield of neuroimaging findings in patients with headache and normal examination; and potentially identifying additional red flags.

Utility of 18F FDG-PET in Parkinsonism in an African population.

Parkinson's Disease remains a diagnostic challenge. Misdiagnosis during life is approximately 25%. Diseases that resemble PD clinically, such as the Parkinsonianplus disorders usually have a poorer prognosis.

Laboratory diagnosis of tuberculous meningitis in human immunodeficiency virus-seropositive patients: Correlation with the uniform case definition.

Background: Laboratory confirmation of the diagnosis of tuberculous meningitis (TBM) has always been problematic. Using the uniform case definition suggested by Marais et al., we determined the sensitivity of a variety of laboratory tests.

Does antiretroviral therapy alter the course of Parkinson's disease in people living with HIV?

South Africa has the world's largest antiretroviral programme which has resulted in an increase in life expectancy in persons living with HIV. Parkinson's disease (PD) is an age-related neurodegenerative disorder. No data has been published in this setting with regards to the interaction between PD and people infected with HIV.

The spectrum of functional neurological disorders: A retrospective analysis at a tertiary hospital in South Africa.

Background: Functional neurological disorders (FNDs) are commonly encountered in practice; however, there is a paucity of data in Africa.

Aim: To identify and describe the clinical profile of patients presenting with FNDs, underlying medical and psychiatric diagnoses and review the investigation and management of these patients.

Setting: Inkosi Albert Luthuli Central Hospital (IALCH), a tertiary-level hospital in Durban, South Africa.

Review of the neurological aspects of HIV infection.

There are almost 40 million people in the world who live with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). The neurological manifestations associated with HIV contribute to significant morbidity and mortality despite the advances made with anti-retroviral therapy (ART). This review presents an approach to classification of neurological disorders in HIV, differentiating diseases due to the virus itself and those due to opportunistic infection.

Clinical series of Parkinson's disease in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa: Retrospective chart review.

Background: There is limited data on Parkinson's disease (PD) in South Africa.

Methods: Demographic and clinical information was extracted from the hospital records of patients who were coded as PD (International Classification of Diseases, 10th revision, G20) from 2002 to 2016.PD was diagnosed using the United Kingdom Parkinson's Disease Society Brain Bank Clinical Diagnostic Criteria (UKBBC).

A comparative study of motor neuron disease in HIV-infected and HIV-uninfected patients.

Background: This study is a descriptive review of the clinical and treatment outcome differences in HIV-infected patients with motor neuron syndrome (MNS) and HIV-uninfected patients with motor neuron disease (MND).

Methods: A retrospective analysis of patients with MND/S was performed at Inkosi Albert Luthuli Central Hospital (IALCH), Durban, South Africa between 2003 and 2017.

Results: One hundred and thirty six patients were included in the study, 101 (76%) were HIV-uninfected and 35 (26%) were HIV-infected.

Posttubercular syringomyelia in HIV-infected patients: A report of 10 cases and literature review.

Objectives: To describe the clinical presentation, spinal magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) findings and outcome of HIV-infected patients with tuberculosis (TB)-associated syringomyelia and to compare these findings between all HIV-infected and -uninfected cases published in the literature.

Methods: A retrospective observational study conducted over a 12.5-year period at a public-sector referral hospital in South Africa.

Spinal Tuberculosis: Clinicoradiological Findings in 274 Patients.

Background: Mycobacterium tuberculosis is a major cause of myelopathy and radiculopathy in settings with a high prevalence of tuberculosis/human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) coinfection. However, a paucity of publications exists on the spectrum of neurological and magnetic resonance (MR) imaging findings of spinal tuberculosis in these populations.

Methods: We conducted a retrospective study of adults with spinal tuberculosis at a referral center in South Africa for patients with spinal disease without bony involvement seen at plain film radiography.

A comparative study of human T-cell lymphotropic virus-associated myelopathy in HIV-positive and HIV-negative patients in KwaZulu-Natal.

Background: KwaZulu-Natal is an endemic area for HIV and human T-cell lymphotropic virus (HTLV) infection. The main neurological manifestation of HTLV is HTLV-associated myelopathy/tropical spastic paraparesis (HAM/TSP). The effect of HIV co-infection in patients with HAM/TSP is not well documented.

The neuromyelitis optica presentation and the aquaporin-4 antibody in HIV-seropositive and seronegative patients in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.

Background: The association of the anti-aquaporin-4 (AQP-4) water channel antibody with neuromyelitis optica (NMO) syndrome has been described from various parts of the world. There has been no large study describing this association from southern Africa, an HIV endemic area. HIV patients often present with visual disturbance or features of a myelopathy but seldom both either simultaneously or consecutively.

Human T cell lymphotropic virus type 1- associated infective dermatitis in KwaZulu Natal, South Africa.

Background: The Human T cell lymphotropic virus type 1 (HTLV-1)-associated infective dermatitis (IDH), is a chronic relapsing dermatitis which usually presents in children older than 2 years. A total of 300 cases have been reported worldwide (Latin America, the Caribbean and only 5 from Senegal). Neither IDH, nor its complications have been reported from the rest of Africa.

Sodium valproate and highly active antiretroviral therapy in HIV positive patients who develop new onset seizures.

Recurrent seizures may occur in up to 11% of HIV positive patients. The aetiology of the seizures includes opportunistic infections, neoplasia, HIV itself, metabolic derangements and drugs. Apart from treating the cause of the seizures, the challenge is to use the appropriate anticonvulsant drug (AED) to avoid potentially adverse drug-drug interactions in patients who are on concurrent highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART).

Utility of a novel lipoarabinomannan assay for the diagnosis of tuberculous meningitis in a resource-poor high-HIV prevalence setting.

Background: In Africa, tuberculous meningitis (TBM) is an important opportunistic infection in HIV-positive patients. Current diagnostic tools for TBM perform sub-optimally. In particular, the rapid diagnosis of TBM is challenging because smear microscopy has a low yield and PCR is not widely available in resource-poor settings.

Diagnosis of tuberculous meningitis: clinical and laboratory parameters.

Background: Confirming the clinical suspicion of tuberculous meningitis (TBM) has always been problematic. Whilst smear and culture positivity are diagnostic, these tests have low sensitivity. The polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assay has given variable results.

Neurological manifestations of HIV infection in Kwazulu-Natal South Africa.

South Africa has one of the fastest growing HIV epidemics in the world and KwaZulu-Natal, one of its nine provinces, is the epicentre of the epidemic. Of the estimated 5.3 million people infected with HIV in South Africa, 1.