A Clinical Study on Opportunistic Infections among HIV/AIDS Patients Admitted in the Department of General Medicine of a Tertiary Care Hospital

ABSTRACT

Introduction: Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) virus,causative agent in acquired immunodeficiency syndrome, isfast becoming a major threat in the Indian subcontinent, withan estimated 3.7 million persons being infected with HIV. HIVinfection is complicated by various opportunistic infections(OIs) such as tuberculosis (TB), candidiasis, herpes zoster,Pneumocystis jirvoceii, cytomegalovirus (CMV) etc. Thisstudy carried out to know the clinical profile of HIV patientswho require admission.Material and methods: The aim of this study to determinethe spectrum of opportunistic infections in adult AIDSpatients. A total of 132 patients were tested for spectrum ofopportunistic infections. All the specimens were processed asper standard procedures to detect bacterial, fungal, parasiticand viral infections.Results: Among 132 patients, 34.84% were females,63.63%males and 1.49% were transgender males. Highproportions of patients were observed in 28-37 years ofagegroup and heterosexual route was the most common modeof transmission. TB (50%) is the most frequent OI followedby candidiasis (49%), pneumocystis (16%) and others.Conclusions: Respiratory system was the most commonsystem involved by OIs. Early diagnosis and prompt treatmentof opportunistic infections is important before developmentof severe immunodeficiency to prevent serious and fataloutcome.