ABSTRACT
The HIV-seropositive subjects identified among the STD Clinic patients seen at a Special Treatment Clinic between 1989 and 1990 were studied to determine the epidemiological and clinical trends of HIV infection in these patients, and to demonstrate any association between the STDs and HIV- seropositivity. Thirty-seven out of the 581 patients investigated have been confirmed HIV-seropositive by Western bolt. The prevalence of HIV infection was 6.4%. Anti-HIV-1 antibody prevalence (3.6%) was higher than that of anti-HIV-2 antibody (2.8%). The age-range of the patients investigated was from 2 weeks to 49 years, and the HIV-seropositive cases were in the age-range 15-49 years, with peak incidence of HIV infection in the 21-30 years age-bracket. The male: female ratio of HIV-seropositive subjects was practically the same (1.01:1). HIV antibody-positive cases consisted of residents from towns in both Northern and Southern Nigeria. Only one of the HIV antibody-positive cases has developed clinical AIDS-progressive weight loss fourteen months after he was found positive for HIV antibody.
PIP: To identify epidemiologic and clinical patterns associated with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection in sexually transmitted disease (STD) patients in Nigeria, serologic testing was performed on 581 men and women seen at Ibadan's Special Treatment Clinic during 1989-90. Of these, 37 (6.4%) were confirmed HIV-positive; 21 (3.6%) had HIV-1 antibodies and the remaining 16 (2.8%) had HIV-2 antibodies. Peak HIV incidence (24 cases, or 65%) was in the 21-30 year age group; the male to female ratio was 1.01 to 1.00. Presenting symptoms in HIV-positive cases included urethral discharge, vaginal discharge, dysuria, and genital ulcers. The prevalences of gonococcal infection, nonspecific urethritis and cervicitis, genital ulcer disease, and trichomoniasis were 27.0%, 18.9%, 16.2%, and 10.8%, respectively, among HIV-infected STD patients; none of the associations between specific STDs and HIV were statistically significant. Only 1 patient had developed clinical signs of acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS). The 6.4% prevalence rate detected among STD patients in this study was considered high since HIV is new to Nigeria (436 cases reported to date). Overall, these findings suggest that the AIDS epidemic is in an early stage in Nigeria and the major mode of HIV transmission is heterosexual sex. Routine HIV screening for high-risk groups in Nigeria, including STD patients, is recommended.
