Evaluation of Baseline CD4+ T Cell Counts and ART Requirement in Newly Diagnosed HIV Seropositive Individuals in a Tertiary Care Hospital of Northern India
DC18-DC21
Correspondence
Dr. Preena Bhalla,
Department of Microbiology, Maulana Azad Medical College,
2-Bahadur Shah Zafar Marg, New Delhi-110002, India.
E-mail: preenabhalla@gmail.com
Introduction: Antiretroviral Therapy (ART) has changed the outlook of Human Immune deficiency Virus (HIV)/ Acquired Immuno Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) patients worldwide.
Aim: To analyse the trends in baseline CD4+ T cell counts and ART requirements in newly diagnosed HIV seropositive individuals in a Tertiary care hospital of Northern India.
Materials and Methods: Out of 1263 HIV seropositive clients identified from January 2012 to June 2014, the baseline CD4+ T cell counts of only those 470 clients were analysed, who registered at the linked ART centre.
Results: The mean baseline CD4+ count of the study group was 249.77±216.0 cells/mm3 and that of male and female were 300.31±240.47 cells/mm3 and 232.38±204.25 cells/mm3 respectively. A total of 259 of 334 (77.54%) HIV reactive males, 83 of 130 (63.85%) HIV reactive females and overall 348 of 470 (74.04%) required antiretroviral treatment on enrolment.
Conclusion: In the present study, about three-fourth of newly diagnosed HIV positive Indian patients required initiation of ART at registration. The relatively low baseline CD4+ T cell counts in this population highlights the need for timely baseline CD4+ T counts testing of HIV positive patients and the urgency of initiating treatment in HIV reactive individuals in Indian health care settings.