Ventricle brain ratio in the clinical course of HIV infection.

As part of the computerized tomographic assessment of an unselected group of 47 patients in different stages of HIV infection we determined the ventricle brain ratio (VBR) and the width of several cortical sulci. We compared the findings for subgroups of patients defined by their stage in the Walter Reed Staging Classification. There was a significant increase in VBR only in the subgroup of patients with manifest acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) (WR 6). The findings are discussed in connection with the question of the likelihood that dementia will develop even in stages of HIV-infection preceding AIDS.