A 44-Year-Old Man with a History of Advanced HIV Is

question 564

Multiple Choice

A 44-year-old man with a history of advanced HIV is brought to the office by his family due to progressive cognitive decline.  Over the last several years he has had worsening memory deficits and difficulty carrying out simple mental tasks.  The patient has had no headaches, slurred speech, muscle weakness, or changes in vision.  He was diagnosed with HIV 7 years ago, but his medical follow-up and treatment compliance have been poor.  The patient does not use tobacco, alcohol, or illicit drugs.  Vital signs are normal.  He has difficulty with delayed recall as well as several executive function tasks.  The remainder of his neurologic examination is unremarkable.  Two weeks later, he dies from severe pneumonia and respiratory failure.  Which of the following histopathologic findings would most likely be found on biopsy of this patient's brain?

• A)Amyloid deposits in the cortical blood vessels
• B)Congo red staining plaques in the hippocampus
• C)Eosinophilic, round, cytoplasmic neuronal inclusions
• D)Microglial nodules and multinucleated giant cells
• E)Profound neuronal loss in the caudate nucleus
• F)Slit-like white matter cavities with surrounding gliosis

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Definitions:

Right-brain Tendencies

Characteristics or behaviors typically associated with the right hemisphere of the brain, such as creativity, intuition, and holistic thinking.

Dominant

Having authority or influence over others; the most powerful or prevalent among several options in a particular context.

University of Utah

A public research university located in Salt Lake City, Utah, known for its academic and research programs.

Self-observation

The practice of attentively monitoring one's own behaviors, thoughts, or emotions, often for the purpose of self-improvement or psychological analysis.