Dermatological disease among HIV-infected patients with CD4-lymphocyte count

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: To correlate the prevalence of dermatological diseases among HIV-infected patient with CD4-lymphocyte count. METHODS: A case series study was carried out in the region of Caxias do Sul, state of Rio Grande do Sul State, Brazil. Data was collected by reviewing the records of HIV-infected patients admitted to a public hospital (198 patients from March 1998 to June 2002) or seen at the university outpatient clinic (40 patients from March to June 2002). The variables analyzed were: age, sex, CD4-lymphocyte count, viral load, and dermatological diseases. Statistical analyses were performed using Student's t-test, Spearman's and Chi-Square tests. RESULTS: The frequency of dermatological disease was 67.2% among hospitalized patients and 75.0% among outpatients. Oral candidiasis was the most prevalent dermatological disease. Among the hospital population, the average CD4 count was lower among patients with dermatological disease than among those with no disease (142.34 cells/mm³ vs 512.35 cells/mm³, respectively; p=0.018). The same phenomenon was observed in outpatient population (138.88 cells/mm³ and 336.21 cells/mm³, respectively; p=0.001). In both populations, a negative correlation was found between CD4 count and the total number of dermatological diseases by a patient (p=0.000, hospital population, p=0.000, outpatient population). CONCLUSIONS: Dermatological diseases are highly prevalent among HIV-infected patients and the frequency and number of these manifestations are well correlated to the patient's immune status and disease progression.