Home › Research › Digital health tools
Cerebellar degeneration associated with human immunodeficiency virus infection
Tagliati M, Simpson D, Morgello S, Clifford D, Schwartz RL, Berger JR.. Neurology, 1998-01-01
Topic: Brain proteins, microglia and lab models
Cerebellar disorders associated with HIV infection are typically the result of discrete cerebellar lesions resulting from opportunistic infections such as toxoplasmosis and progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy or primary CNS lymphoma. Clinical symptoms and pathologic abnormalities related to the cerebellum may also be observed with HIV dementia. A primary cerebellar degeneration with HIV has not previously been reported. Ten patients were identified over an 8-year period at five medical centers. All patients had clinical, laboratory, and radiologic evaluations, and three had neuropathologic examinations. Patients presented with progressively unsteady gait, slurred speech, and limb clumsiness. Examination revealed gait ataxia, impaired limb coordination, dysarthria, and abnormal eye movements. Cognition, strength, and sensory function remained normal. CD4 lymphocyte counts varied between 10 and 437 cells/mm3. Neuroimaging studies showed prominent cerebellar atrophy. Neuropathology showed focal degeneration of the cerebellar granular cell layer and unusual focal axonal swellings in the brainstem and spinal cord. Cultures, histopathology, and immunochemical studies showed no conclusive evidence of infection. We report a syndrome of unexplained degeneration of the cerebellum occurring in association with HIV infection.
Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
APA 7th
Tagliati, M., Simpson, D., Morgello, S., Clifford, D., Schwartz, R. L., & Berger, JR. (1998). Cerebellar degeneration associated with human immunodeficiency virus infection. Neurology. https://doi.org/10.1212/wnl.50.1.244
Vancouver
Tagliati M, Simpson D, Morgello S, Clifford D, Schwartz RL, Berger JR. Cerebellar degeneration associated with human immunodeficiency virus infection. Neurology. 1998. doi:10.1212/wnl.50.1.244. PMID: 9443487.
BibTeX
@article{tagliati1998-9443487,
author = {Tagliati, M. and Simpson, D. and Morgello, S. and Clifford, D. and Schwartz, R. L. and Berger, JR.},
title = {{Cerebellar degeneration associated with human immunodeficiency virus infection}},
journal = {Neurology},
year = {1998},
doi = {10.1212/wnl.50.1.244},
pmid = {9443487},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1212/wnl.50.1.244}
}
Built from the record alzhub holds for this paper, not looked up. Volume, issue and page numbers are not held in the record. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
Key findings
- Cerebellar disorders associated with HIV infection are typically the result of discrete cerebellar lesions resulting from opportunistic infections such as toxoplasmosis and progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy or primary CNS lymphoma.
- Examination revealed gait ataxia, impaired limb coordination, dysarthria, and abnormal eye movements.
Why it matters
This study describes 10 patients with HIV infection who developed a cerebellar degeneration causing unsteady gait, slurred speech, and limb clumsiness, with brain imaging showing cerebellar atrophy. It is about a condition associated with HIV, not Alzheimer's disease, and does not provide information on treating, curing or preventing Alzheimer's disease.
New to this subject? Start with our plain-English guide: Digital health →
Study details
- Evidence strengthLow
How this study scored 41/100
Published in a leading specialty journal. Scored zero for study design, sample size, effect reported, studied in people and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 9 / 10 | Tier 2 — leading specialty journal (Neurology) |
| Journal's citation record | 4 / 4 | Neurology: journal h-index 525 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29) |
| Study design | 0 / 12 | No study design recorded — scores zero, not guessed (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Strength of evidence | 1 / 5 | Rated “low” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 1 / 5 | 1998 — older than 20 years, still counted |
| Sample size | 0 / 4 | Participant count not stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Effect reported | 0 / 3 | No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Studied in people | 0 / 3 | Not stated whether this was studied in people — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Randomised / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomisation or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | 5 / 7 | Cited 114 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 2 / 5 | 3.8 citations a year over 30 year(s) since 1998 |
| Impact for its field and year | 1 / 6 | Cited 0.9× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 0 / 6 | No other study in this library cites it |
| Still being cited | 0 / 4 | Cited 2 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 2 / 4 | Last-listed author Joseph Berger: h-index 42 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 2 / 3 | Washington University in St. Louis: institution h-index 1,962 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 2 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 5 institution(s) in 1 country |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 9443487) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Total | 41 / 100 | — |
What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →
Read the original
May need a subscription OpenAlex found no free copy of the full text (checked 6 Feb 1020), so the publisher may charge for it. The PubMed abstract is free.
Related studies in Digital health tools
Also tagged “cerebral”
900 studies in the library carry the topic tag “cerebral”; these are this study's neighbours in a fixed, alphabetical-by-hash tour of them, not the closest in content. All 900 tagged studies.