Table 2.
Baseline Characteristics of the Cohort
| Characteristic | Variable | No. | % (No.) or Median (IQR) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Demographics | Age, y | 499 | 34 (29–39) |
| Sex, male | 501 | 52% (260) | |
| History | Concurrent tuberculosis | 419 | 25% (123) |
| Duration of symptoms, d | 458 | 14 (7–21) | |
| Symptoms | Headache | 496 | 99% (489) |
| Febrile symptoms | 497 | 57% (280) | |
| Visual symptoms | 493 | 51% (250) | |
| Hearing loss | 415 | 14% (60) | |
| Seizures | 496 | 19% (94) | |
| Nausea/vomiting | 494 | 54% (266) | |
| Cough | 494 | 35% (173) | |
| Signs | Fever, >37.5°C | 479 | 23% (112) |
| Tachycardia, >100 bpm | 491 | 19% (91) | |
| Hypotension, <90/50 mm Hg | 485 | 3% (15) | |
| Tachypnea, >20 bpm | 463 | 19% (89) | |
| Altered mental status | 499 | 25% (123) | |
| Meningism | 492 | 75% (369) | |
| Papilledema | 311 | 12% (36) | |
| Decreased visual acuity, <6/6 | 361 | 39% (141) | |
| Cranial nerve lesion | 434 | 13% (57) | |
| Investigations | Raised OP >25 cm CSF | 450 | 51% (230) |
| Raised OP >30 cm CSF | 450 | 38% (173) | |
| CSF white cell count, ×106/L | 461 | 15 (1–57) | |
| CSF protein, g/dL | 392 | 0.7 (0.4–1.3) | |
| CSF glucose, mg/dL | 374 | 39.6 (25.2–50.5) | |
| CSF CRAG, titera | 247 | 1:1024 (1:512–4096) | |
| QCC, log10 CFU/mLa | 496 | 5.30 (4.5–5.9) | |
| CD4, cells/µL | 456 | 24 (10–50) | |
| Log10 VL, copies/mL | 368 | 5.15 (4.7–5.5) | |
| Outcomes | 2-week mortality | 492 | 17% (82) |
| 10-week mortality | 484 | 34% (163) | |
| Time admission to death, d | 161 | 13 (5–310) |
Abbreviations: CFU, colony-forming units; CRAG, cryptococcal antigen; CSF, cerebrospinal fluid; IQR, interquartile range; OP, opening pressure; QCC, quantitative cryptococcal culture; VL, HIV load.
a See Supplementary Figure 1 for a description of the relationship between CSF CRAG and QCC.