Cerebrospinal fluid ferritin in patients with meningitis and cerebral infarction or bleeding.
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Resumo
The diagnostic value of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) ferritin was assessed in 30 patients with meningeal reaction (viral meningitis 10; bacterial meningitis 6; meningism 14) and in 37 patients with cerebrovascular disease (cerebral infarction 29; transient ischaemic attacks 4; cerebral haemorrhage 4). The control group comprised 13 subjects with minor neurological disorders. CSF-ferritin levels were not significantly different in the various subgroups, most patients having values within the normal reference interval (2-7 micrograms/l). A clearly elevated CSF-ferritin was seen in one patient with bacterial meningitis and in one patient with intraventricular bleeding. In patients with meningeal reaction, CSF-ferritin was significantly correlated to CSF-protein. Patients with cerebrovascular disease displayed significant correlations between CSF-albumin and CSF-IgG and between CSF-ferritin, CSF-albumin and CSF-IgG. The present study indicates that measurement of CSF-ferritin is of no practical clinical relevance in the evaluation of patients with meningeal reaction and cerebrovascular disease.