Analysis of Otorhinolaryngologic Disease in Patients with Human Immunodeficiency Virus Infection / 대한이비인후과학회지

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: As human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection increases in prevalence and new medical therapies prolong the survival of HIV-infected patients, otolaryngologists will see a larger number of patients with head and neck manifestations of HIV infection. The aims of study were to evaluate the various otorhinolaryngologic diseases and to analyze the useful markers for predicting immune function in HIV-infected patients. SUBJECTS AND METHOD: Of 380 HIV-infected patients, 40 patients (10.5% ; 39 males and 1 female, age ranging from 23 to 55) were referred to otorhinolaryngologists. Spectrum of disease and correlation between various surrogate markers (HIV RNA, leukocyte count, neutrophil, lymphocyte, CD3, CD4, CD8 T cell percentage and count, CD4/CD8 ratio) and risk of infectious otorhinolaryngologic diseases were analyzed. RESULTS: Thirty-three patients (82.5%) were infectious, 6 patients (15.0%) had non-infectious diseases and 1 patient (2.5%) malignancy. In otologic diseases, acute otitis media and chronic otitis media were frequently found in the mentioned order. In rhinologic diseases, rhinosinusitis and vestibulitis were frequently found in the mentioned order, with one primary extra nodal non-Hodgkin's lymphoma. In laryngologic diseases, pharyngolaryngitis, oral candidiasis, stomatitis were frequently found. In the surrogate markers of immune function, CD4 percentage, CD4 count and CD4/CD8 ratio were found significantly lower in the infectious diseases than in the non-infectious disease. CONCLUSION: Of HIV-infected patients, 10.5% had seen an otolaryngologist, and the majority had infectious diseases. The risk of infectious diseases was strongly correlated with the CD4 percentage, count and CD4/CD8 ratio.