Abstract
The prevalence and significance of peripheral blood eosinophilia in patients infected with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) were evaluated. Fifteen of 119 consecutive patients had absolute eosinophil counts of > 450/mm3. During a mean follow-up period of 419 days eosinophilia could be identified as secondary to a parasitic infection in only one patient. Correlation with disease stage showed a higher rate of advanced disease in patients with absolute eosinophilia. In a multivariate regression analysis, only low CD4+ cell counts, not the CDC disease stage or the use of antiretroviral therapy or primary prophylaxis, contributed significantly to the prevalence of eosinophilia. It is concluded that expen-sive laboratory investigations in asymptomatic patients with advanced-stage HIV disease are neither necessary nor cost effective.
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Tietz, A., Sponagel, L., Erb, P. et al. Eosinophilia in patients infected with the human immunodeficiency virus. Eur. J. Clin. Microbiol. Infect. Dis. 16, 675–677 (1997). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01708558
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01708558