ABSTRACT
In Guinea Bissau, West Africa's little country, since 1989 to 1995 June the first 3091 patients with tuberculosis have been tested for HIV-1, and HIV-2 infections. During the first two years of epidemic surveillance the HIV-2 seroprevalence among tuberculotics was respectively 14.89% and 17.26%. Since 1991 it has been noticed besides an increase of seroprevalence for HIV-2 up to 20,27% in 1992, a constant increase for HIV-1 infection, associated or not with HIV-2. The Authors conclude that the epidemiologic pattern of Guinea Bissau is particularly interesting because in this country two epidemics (for HIV-1 and for HIV-2) have been followed since the beginning among tuberculotics allowing to study the natural history and epidemiologic evolution with particular accuracy.
ABSTRACT
The authors briefly report the epidemiological status of HIV-1 and HIV-2 infections among patients affected by tuberculosis in Guinea Bissau and evaluate the therapeutic follow up in 177 patients contemporarily affected by TBC and HIV-2 infection. The evaluation of the surviving times has been done according to the Kaplan-Meier curve by considering the following determinants: 1) sex; 2) sputum positive for acid-fast bacilli; 3) age range: A) 10-30 years - B) 31-45 years - C) more than 45 years. The total number days/person was 1417. The drop out was moderate. The serum prevalence for HIV-2 in patients affected by tuberculosis in Guinea Bissau is about 20% but in the last two years HIV-1 infection is increasing. There is no significant difference in the surviving curves due to the sex. Tbc-HIV-2+ patients have a longer survival than tbc-HIV-1+ patients reported by European and North America epidemiological data. The present epidemiological data were obtained in an African environment and, due to the low financial support, it was not possible to correlate them with the immunological and microbiological ones.
