 | The 131st Annual Meeting (November 15-19, 2003) of APHA |
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| The 131st Annual Meeting (November 15-19, 2003) of APHA |
Angel M Mayor-Becerra, MD, MS, Maria A Gomez, PhD, Eddy Rios, PhD, MPH, and Robert F. Hunter, MD. Internal Medicine Department, Retrovirus Research Center, Universidad Central del Caribe, Call Box 60327, Bayamón, PR 00960-6032, (787) 787-8722, amayorb@hotmail.com
Background: HIV-infected person’s life expectancy increased since the introduction of antiretroviral therapies (ART). Concomitantly Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection becomes a great contributor to morbidity and mortality in this population. Injecting drug user (IDU) is the higher risk factor for HIV/HCV coinfection. Few studies had evaluated this co-infection in Puerto Rico, even thought most of their HIV patients are IDUs. Methods: A prospective study analyzed 580 HIV/HCV coinfected patients, followed in the Retrovirus Research Center at Bayamón, Puerto Rico, until Dec.2001. Chi-Square, ANOVA and Cox proportional hazard was used to evaluate differences. Results: The 78% were male, 80% were IDU’s and 41.5% had CD4+ T cell count below 200/mm3. The mean age at coinfection was 39.5 years, and the mean followed up time was 1.6 years. Mortality rate was 26.4%. It was significantly higher (p<0.05) in IDUs, patients with recurrent pneumonia (RP) or wasting syndrome (WS) antecedents and in patients with CD4 count below 200/mm3. Patients who receive multiple ART had lower mortality (p<0.01). Cox hazard analysis confirmed that low CD4+ T cell count, antecedents of RP, WS and lower number of ART increased significantly the mortality risk. Conclusions: As expected coinfection was higher in IDUs, however it did not affected the mortality rate. Significant mortality increments were detected in patients with high immunological damage, and with some AIDS define condition at the coinfection. Contrary multiple ART decreased significantly their mortality. Authors recommend early multiple ART treatment implementation in HIV infected patients, to reduce coinfection and ensure better patients prognosis. Supported by RCMI/NIH G12RR03035,CDC/ASD U62/CCU206209
Learning Objectives:
Keywords: HIV/AIDS, Hepatitis C
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.