Neurological Sequelae After Paediatric Cryptococcal Meningitis
- Author: mycolabadmin
- 10/24/2025
- View Source
Summary
This research reviewed 868 children worldwide who had cryptococcal meningitis, a serious fungal brain infection. One in five surviving children experienced long-term neurological problems, most commonly vision loss, weakness, learning difficulties, or hearing loss. Importantly, no child in the medical literature received proper neurological testing after recovery, meaning the actual burden of problems is likely much higher. The study emphasizes the critical need for formal follow-up assessments and rehabilitation services for these children to help them achieve the best possible outcomes.
Background
Infectious insults to a child’s developing brain can result in lifelong neurological and neurodevelopmental consequences. Adult survivors of cryptococcal meningitis (CM) suffer from long-term sequelae such as blindness and motor weakness, but little is known about outcomes in children.
Objective
To characterize the long-term neurological burden caused by cryptococcal meningitis in children through a systematic literature review of paediatric cases with proven CNS cryptococcal disease.
Results
Overall mortality was 24% (104/430). Of survivors with documented clinical outcomes, 20% (36/184) had neurological sequelae. Visual impairment was most common (13%, 23/184), remarkably higher in C. gattii meningitis (32%, 10/31). Other sequelae included limb weakness (n=8), learning difficulties (n=7), hearing loss (n=3), and recurrent seizures (n=2). No child had formal neurodevelopmental assessment documented.
Conclusion
One in five children with documented outcomes after cryptococcal meningitis had neurological sequelae. Given this substantial burden, neurodevelopmental assessment including vision and hearing should be standard in national guidelines to support rehabilitation and functional outcomes in surviving children.
- Published in:Journal of Fungi,
- Study Type:Systematic Review,
- Source: 10.3390/jof11110767, PMID: 41295148