ARTIGOAbstract With the purpose of describing the clinical and laboratory characteristics of cryptococcus meningoencephalitis, we reviewed the records of 104 patients admitted with this diagnosis at Couto Maia Hospital, reference for patients with infectious diseases in Salvador-BA Northeastern Brazil, from 1972 to 1996. The patients' age varied from 8 months to 79 years. Sixty-four (61.5%) patients were male. The duration of the disease varied from 2 to 150 days, average 27.7 days. The most common signs and symptoms were headache (92.7%), fever (84.4%) and neck stiffness (83.2%). The cell number in cerebrospinal fluid was greater than 4/mm• in 95.8% of the patients with lymphocyte predominance in 86.3% of the cases. The lethality rate was 42.7%.

RESUMO - Prognostic factors in cryptococcal meningoencephalitisABSTRACT -Objective: To identify demographic, clinical and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) variables associated to intrahospitalar lethality of patients with cryptococcal meningoencephalitis. Study design: Retrospective cohort to study prognosis. Setting: Hospital Couto Maia (HCMaia) reference for patients with infectious diseases in the State of Bahia Northeastern Brazil. Population: Patients admitted at HCMaia, from 1972 to 1996, with the diagnosis of cryptococcal meningoencephalitis. Results: Lethality rate was 42.7%. The most important neurological abnormalities were neck stiffness, decreased consciousness level, behavior changes, cranial nerve palsy and visual alterations. Disease time over 30 days, involvement of consciousness level and cerebrospinal fluid cells under 40/mm³ were associated to a higher lethality rate. Conclusion: Disease time over 30 days, involvement of consciousness level, and CSF decreased cellularity were the only predictors of lethality in the studied population.