Spectrum of Opportunistic Infections and Profile of CD4⁺ Counts among AIDS Patients in North India

Abstract.

Background:

As the number of AIDS cases increases in India, information available among clinicians about the prevalence of opportunistic infections (OIs) is scarce. The aim of the present study was to document the characteristic OIs of HIV-infected North Indian patients along with their CD4⁺ counts.

Patients and Methods:

The study group consisted of subjects with confirmed serodiagnosis of HIV, attending the medical clinics at a tertiary health care center in North India. The CD4⁺ counts were estimated by FACS Calibur (BD) flow cytometer. Simultaneously, routine microbiology smears, cultures and serology were performed to confirm OI.

Results:

In this retrospective study of 421 subjects, the predominant OI was tuberculosis (47%, 189 cells/µl), followed by parasitic diarrhea (43.5%, 227 cells/µl) and oral candidiasis (25.2%, 189 cells/µl).

Conclusion:

Tuberculosis was the most frequent OI in the HIV-infected patients studied, and the major mode of transmission of HIV was by sexual route. The median CD4⁺ counts observed were lower when compared to other studies.