Necrotizing Vasculitis and HIV Replication in Peripheral Nerves

Abstract

To the Editor: Necrotizing vasculitis of the nerves may occur in patients infected with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV),^{1 , 2} but its pathogenesis remains obscure.³ Despite the isolation of HIV from peripheral-nerve homogenates^{4 5 6} and the rare finding of HIV-like particles in peripheral axons⁷ in some patients infected with HIV who have peripheral neuropathy, neither immunohistochemical studies for identification of HIV antigens⁶ nor previous attempts to demonstrate viral genomes in situ⁵ in this tissue have been successful. We have observed two patients with acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) and necrotizing vasculitis of the nervous system in whom HIV replication in infiltrating mononuclear cells . . .