A 41-year-old man with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection was admitted with dyspnea on exertion and a nonproductive cough. He was successfully treated for pneumocystis jirovecii pneumonia. Admission physical examination revealed stigmata of four HIV-associated infections demonstrated in the two clinical images: 1) scarring from herpes zoster in the right ophthalmic (V1) distribution of the trigeminal nerve (Panel A, hollow arrow); 2) seborrheic dermatitis in the bilateral nasal folds (Panel A, asterisk); 3) oropharyngeal candidiasis (Panel B, arrow); and 4) oral hairy leukoplakia (OHL; Panel B, arrowhead).
Dermatologic manifestations are common among patients with HIV and may provide a clinical indication of underlying immune status. Herpes zoster and seborrheic dermatitis tend to occur early in HIV infection and are associated with relatively high mean CD4 cell counts (380/mm3 and 450/mm3, respectively)1. Oral candidiasis, the most common oral opportunistic infection in patients with HIV/AIDS, often presents at CD4 cell counts less than 300/mm3 2. OHL is relatively specific for HIV infection and is highly predictive of the development of acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS)3. It is associated with a mean CD4 cell count of 143/mm3 4. The presence of both oral candidiasis and OHL together suggest more severe immune dysfunction; these concomitant infections are associated with a mean CD4 cell count of 89/mm3 5. In one study, the joint occurrence of any two HIV-related oral lesions had a mean CD4 cell count of 123/mm3 and a 75% positive predictive value of finding a CD4 cell count less than 200/mm3 4. Our patient had a CD4 cell count of 32/mm3.
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Levy, T.H., Jacobson, D.F. Dermatologic Manifestations as Indicators of Immune Status in HIV/AIDS. J GEN INTERN MED 27, 124 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11606-011-1743-4
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11606-011-1743-4