Neurosurgical Interventions in Patients With Cerebral Toxoplasmosis

Abstract

Toxoplasmosis of the brain is a pressing issue in the practice of neurologists and neurosurgeons. Most patients with cerebral toxoplasmosis are persons with AIDS. However, toxoplasmic encephalitis can develop in patients with any immunodeficiency conditions that lead to reactivation of toxoplasmosis infection in the central nervous system. Although cerebral toxoplasmosis is not a neurosurgical pathology, patients sometimes require neurosurgical interventions: diagnostic biopsy and lesion removal. Moreover, literature shows cases of removal of brain lesions initially mistaken for a brain tumor, which, as a rule, occurs when the patient’s HIV status is unknown and the severity of their condition does not allow for a comprehensive additional examination.This article reviews Russian and foreign publications on neurosurgical interventions in patients with cerebral toxoplasmosis.

Keywords

• cerebral toxoplasmosis
• neurosurgery
• surgery
• biopsy