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Background: Several clinical manifestations of sickle cell anaemia (SCA) have been associated with zinc deficiency. Determining the zinc status of children with SCA in Nigeria, a country that accounts for the highest burden of the disease worldwide, will provide a template that could assist in critically appraising the need or otherwise for zinc supplementation or fortification programmes in these children. Methods: This was a cross-sectional comparative study conducted at the Jos University Teaching Hospital, Jos, Nigeria among 700 children (350 SCA patients and 350 age and sex matched hemoglobin AA controls). Serum zinc was analysed using the atomic absorption spectrophotometry. Results: The median serum zinc concentration of children with SCA was 6(3-7) µmol/l and it was significantly lower than that of the controls 8(4-9) µmol/l, p = 0.04. The prevalence of zinc deficiency in this study was 67% in children with SCA compared with 34% in the control group, (p<0.0001). The proportion of zinc deficient patients was more among children from lower socio economic class (68.5%, 35.5%) than in the upper socio economic class (38.5%, 16.3%) in both cases and controls groups respectively. Conclusion: There is a high prevalence of zinc deficiency in the study population especially among those with sickle cell anaemia. Zinc supplementation or fortification should be considered as part of intervention strategies to improve the zinc status of these children particularly those with sickle cell anaemia
Subject(s)
Anemia, Sickle Cell , Child , Nigeria , ZincABSTRACT
Aim: To determine risk factors for first-line antiretroviral treatment failure in HIV-1 infected children attending Jos University Teaching Hospital, Jos. Study Design: Retrospective cohort study. Place and Duration of Study: Paediatric HIV clinic at the Jos University Teaching Hospital, Jos, between February 2006 and December 2010. Methodology: Data on demographic, clinical and laboratory variables for 580 HIV-1 infected children aged 2 months to 15 years on antiretroviral therapy (ART) were analysed. A comparison of the data on children with and without treatment failure was made. Variables associated with treatment failure in a univariate analysis were then fit in a multivariate logistic model to determine the factors that were associated with treatment failure. Results: The rate of treatment failure among the children was 18.8%. Previous antiretroviral drugs (ARV) exposure for treatment, not receiving cotrimoxazole prophylaxis before commencement of ART and having severe immune suppression at HIV diagnosis were the factors independently associated with treatment failure. Children with previous ARV exposure for treatment were 4 times more likely to fail treatment compared to those without previous exposure (AOR=4.20 (1.93-9.15); p <0.001). Children who did not receive cotrimoxazole prophylaxis were twice more likely to develop treatment failure compared to those who did (AOR=2.26 (1.06-4.79); p=0.03) and children with severe immune suppression at HIV diagnosis were twice more likely to develop treatment failure compared to those without severe immune suppression (AOR=2.34 (1.47-3.72); p<0.001). Conclusion: HIV-infected children with previous ARV exposure for treatment and severe immune suppression should be monitored closely and given frequent adherence counseling to minimize the risk of treatment failure. Cotrimoxazole prophylaxis should be encouraged in HIV-infected children while they await commencement of ART, which may improve ART adherence and thus reduce the risk of treatment failure.
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Aim: To determine the factors associated with a low CD4 count among HIV-1 positive patients. Study Design: Cross-sectional study. Place and Duration of Study: Adult HIV clinic at the Jos University Teaching Hospital, Jos, between October 2010 and April 2011. Methodology: Data on demographic, clinical and laboratory variables for 218 HIV-1 infected patients aged 20 years and older were analysed. A low CD4 cell count was defined as CD4 cell count <200 cells/ml based on the WHO criteria for severe immune suppression. A multivariate logistic regression modeling was fitted to determine the variables that were independently associated with a low CD4 count. Results: Of the 218 HIV-1 infected patients, 119 (54.6%) had a low CD4 count at enrolment. The odds of having a low CD4 count was: 7 times higher in patients with WHO clinical stage 3 or 4 compared to those with stage 1 or 2 (P<.001) and 4 times higher in those with HIV RNA viral load ≥4.6 log10 copies/ml compared to those with less (P<.001); but the odds of having a low CD4 count was reduced by 63% in those patients that were resident in Plateau State compared to those resident outside the state (P=.01). Conclusion: Our study patients were more likely to have a CD4 count <200 cells/ml which would suggest late presentation/ late HIV diagnosis and thus a delayed opportunity for timely access to HIV care and initiation of antiretroviral therapy. There is the need to intensify efforts in early routine HIV counseling and testing not only in health facilities in the cities but also in smaller towns and rural communities, so as to reduce the frequency of late HIV diagnosis with its potential implications.
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Aims: To determine the prevalence of non-B HIV-1 subtype specific mutations in the protease gene among antiretroviral drug-naive individuals in Jos, Nigeria. Study Design: This was a cross-sectional study in which randomly selected blood samples of HIV-1 positive anti-retroviral drug-naïve individuals were used for genotyping assay. Place and Duration of Study: The study was conducted at the adult HIV clinic of the AIDS Prevention Initiative in Nigeria (APIN) programme, Jos University Teaching Hospital (JUTH), Jos, Nigeria between October 2010 and April 2011. Methodology: Of the one hundred and five plasma samples, 100 samples were successfully reverse transcribed and amplified by nested PCR. The amplicons were directly sequenced on an automated ABI genetic analyzer using BigDye Terminator Cycle Sequencing Kit. Subtyping and phylogenetic analyses were performed using the REGA subtyping tool version 2.0 and MEGA 5.0 software. Both the Stanford HIV database algorithm and IAS-USA 2013 drug resistance update were used for interpretation of drug sensitivity. Results: The proportion of the non-B HIV-1 subtypes were as follows: CRF02_AG (48%), G (41%), CRF06_cpx (6%), A (5%). Q58E, a major drug resistance mutation to PI, occurred as a low prevalence mutation in subtype G. The most common mutations observed among the subtypes were I13V, K14R, K20I, M36I, R41K, H69K, V82I and L89M. Conclusion: A non-uniform distribution of non-B HIV-1 subtypes were observed in Jos, Nigeria, with CRF02_AG and G predominating among the antiretroviral drug-naive individuals. Among the different subtypes in circulation, there was a high prevalence of minor mutations and natural polymorphisms associated with the protease gene. Such mutations define the subtype diversity which may impact on virulence and drug ‘responses’, thus further studies are needed to evaluate the clinical implications of these mutations.
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Introduction: The human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and drugs taken for this infection are known to cause QTc interval prolongation which in turn can lead to severe arrhythmias. The prevalence and associated factors of prolonged QTc in HIV-positive children in sub- Saharan Africa have not been described.Objectives: To compare the mean QTc interval and prevalence of QTc prolongation in HIV-positive children and HIV-negative controls; and to determine the factors associated with prolonged QTc in HIV-positive children.Methodology: In a cross-sectional comparative study; the corrected QT intervals (QTc) of 100 HIV-positive children were compared with those of age- and sex-matched HIV-negative healthy controls. QTc 0.46 seconds was regarded as prolonged.Results: Subjects were aged 9 months to 14 years. Mean QTc was significantly longer-43.31 (95 CI 43.30; 43.32) seconds in HIV-positive children (62 of whom were on anti-retroviral therapy) compared with controls-41.43 (41.42; 41.44) seconds (P 0.0001). Mean QTc was also significantly longer in subjects receiving zidovudine (ZDV) - [0.46 (0.45; 0.47) versus 0.43 (0.42; 0.44) seconds] - P
Subject(s)
HIV , Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome , Child , HIV Seropositivity , Long QT SyndromeABSTRACT
Background: Nonadherence to antiretroviral therapy (ART) may encourage the development of resistance to antiretroviral drugs (ARVs). Poor adherence is known to be associated with ART failure which could compromise the benefits of ART in children. Therefore; it is important to identify the reasons why children on ART may fail to take their ARVs. In this study; we described the characteristics of human immunodeficiency virus-1 (HIV-1) infected children with ART nonadherence as well as the reasons for their nonadherence. Methodology: A retrospective cohort study in which data on 580 HIV-1 infected children enrolled on ART between February 2006 and December 2010 at the pediatric HIV clinic of the Jos University Teaching Hospital; Jos; was analyzed. Subjects were aged 2 months to 15 years. Information on adherence was obtained by child or caregiver self-report. They also had repeated adherence counseling during each clinic follow-up visit and were taught the use of alarm clocks daily for reminding them of when the next ARV dose will be due. Results: There were 30 (5.2) children with non-adherence to ART. Among children with nonadherence; majority were: Children aged 1-10 years (76.7); males (53.3) and did not know their diagnosis of HIV (90.9). The odds of nonadherence was two times higher among children who failed first-line ART compared with those who did not (odds ratio [95 confidence interval]; 2.28 [1.03-5.02]; P = 0.04). The most common reason for nonadherence was: Forgot to take medications (46.7). Conclusion: The low rate of nonadherence to ART in this study could be attributed to repeated adherence counseling during each clinic follow-up visit and the use of alarm clocks daily for reminders on when the next ARV dose will be due