A 38 year old man had suffered from HIV for over a decade.The many side effects of his anti-retroviral therapy regimen depressed him,and he persuaded himself to stop taking the drugs.He was brought to the Emergency Department by his mother because he had become unresponsive.She related that he had complained of a severe headache just prior to losing consciousness.Unfortunately,he expired before any therapy or diagnostic tests could be performed.An autopsy was requested by his mother,and a representative section of the brain is shown in the accompanying high power photomicrograph,stained with the mucicarmine method (which stains mucin).Which one of the following is the best diagnosis?

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Cryptococcus neoformans has a mucinous capsule,which stains with mucicarminEIt is also a common cause of meningitis in individuals with HIV/AIDS.Also,only round yeast forms are seen.Both aspergillosis and candidiasis are associated with hyphal forms of the organism (although Candida sometimes has both).CMV forms characteristic viral inclusions,and Pneumocystis is generally found in the lung,although disseminated cases rarely occur.

A 38 Year Old Man Had Suffered from HIV for Over