Fever in patients with HIV infection in a teaching hospital in Iran

ABSTRACT

Fever, is a common sign during the course of HIV infection. The aim of this study was to describe the etiology and clinical characteristics of fever among HIV/AIDS patients in a teaching hospital in Iran. In this existing data study, we retrospectively reviewed the charts of admitted HIV/AIDS patients with fever to Imam Khomeini hospital, from October 1995 to March 2005 to assess the causes of their fever. Totally, 125 admissions were performed for 120 patients. The mean [ +/- SD] age was 34.8 +/- 14.7 years. The final diagnosis of fever was determined in 65.6% of all admissions. Mostly [34.4%], the cause of fever remained undiagnosed. Pulmonary tuberculosis was the most commonly identified etiology of fever [33.6%], followed by opportunistic infections such as oral candidiasis, Pneumocystis jirovecii pneumonia and cerebral toxoplasmosis. Tuberculosis is the most common infection in Iranian HIV/AIDS patients and appropriate workup should be considered in all feverish HIV/AIDS patients