Long-term Cognitive Outcomes in Tuberculous Meningitis

OBJECTIVE: Data on cognitive changes in patients with tuberculous meningitis (TBM) are sparse. We aimed to study the cognitive profiles of patients with grade I TBM and correlate them with the cytokine values. METHODS: Prospectively, 60 patients (M:F-31:29) with grade I TBM were recruited. Clinical details were collected; CSF estimation of cytokines, neuropsychological assessment, and correlation were performed. RESULTS: = 0.012), and digit span test (0.035). Verbal learning did not show any significant change. Overall, the neuropsychological tests showed better recovery of attention, working memory, and category fluency and showed minimal recovery of verbal learning. CONCLUSIONS: There is subclinical evidence of cognitive impairment in patients with TBM, and this correlated with elevated cytokines. Both the frontal and temporal lobes showed varying degrees of cognitive impairment.