According to reports, there were 40,000 tigers in India a century ago. The country is home to 40% of the world's tigers, with 23 tiger reserves in 17 states. The 2006 count found a steep fall in India's tiger population to 1,411 from 3,642 animals in a federal census in 2002. Poaching and urbanisation are blamed for the decline in tiger numbers in the country.
Cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) analysis is a group of laboratory tests that measure chemicals in the fluid that surrounds and protects the brain and spinal cord. The tests may look for proteins, sugar (glucose), and other substances. A sample of CSF is needed. A lumbar puncture, also called a spinal tap, is the most common way to collect this sample. Less common ways to take a fluid sample include: 1  Cisternal puncture.  Removal of CSF from a tube that is already in the CSF, such as a shunt, ventricular drain, or pain pump.
In conclusion, CSF cryptococcal antigen seems to be the best test for diagnosis of cryptococcal meningitis in terms of sensitivity, but it is an unreliable tool, at least among HIV-positive patients, to drive therapeutic monitoring, particularly in assessing the point of discontinuation of antifungal therapy in HIV-infected patients.