EEG IN EARLY HIV-1 INFECTION IS CHARACTERIZED BY ANTERIOR DYSRHYTHMICITY OF LOW MAXIMAL AMPLITUDE

We analyzed the EEGs of 67 HIV-1-infected patients at various stages of the disease and of 35 HIV-1-seronegative controls. The most common EEG abnormality in HIV-1 infection was an increased amount of generalized episodic or persistent, predominantly anterior slow activity, associated with a low level of maximal amplitude. When compared to the controls, a lower maximal amplitude of dominant background activity (p < 0.001), and more marked generalized (p < 0.01) and anterior (p < 0.001) disturbances were already seen in early stages of HIV-1 infection. EEG abnormalities were more severe in patients with advanced HIV-1 infection than in those at early infection (p < 0.001 to p < 0.05). The presence of a more marked, posteriorly (p < 0.01) accentuated, generalized slow activity (p = 0.02) was found more often in patients with T-helper cell counts lower than 0.4 x 109 (p = 0.05) than in those with higher numbers of T-helper cells. No clear associations were found between the severity of EEG abnormalities and the duration of HIV-1 infection. Our results suggest that EEG is a sensitive method in detecting subclinical functional cerebral disturbances caused by HIV-1.