The prevalence and clinical significance of intestinal parasites in HIV-infected patients in Denmark

Christen Rune Stensvold, Susanne Dam Nielsen, Jens Henrik Badsberg, Jørgen Engberg, Nina Friis-Møller, Sanne Søgaard Nielsen, Henrik Vedel Nielsen, Alice Friis-Møller

    24 Citations (Scopus)

    Abstract

    To investigate the prevalence and clinical significance of intestinal parasites in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected patients, faecal specimens from 96 HIV-infected patients were submitted to microbiological analyses, including microscopy and polymerase chain reaction for protozoa and enteropathogenic bacteria. Results of microbiological analyses were compared with self-reported gastrointestinal complaints collected using a validated questionnaire. Thirty-two (33%) patients were positive for parasites. However, opportunistic parasites (Isospora and Cryptosporidium) were detected in only 2 instances. Entamoeba dispar was detected in 10 cases, 9 of which represented men who have sex with men (MSM). Despite generally low HIV RNA loads and high CD4 T-cell counts, 42% of the 76 patients reporting symptoms complained of diarrhoea, 31% of whom were parasite-positive. The presence of diarrhoea was not associated with the presence or absence of parasites; neither was it associated with receiving highly active anti-retroviral therapy (HAART) in general, or protease inhibitors (PI) in particular. A CD4 T-cell count <200 cells/mm 3 was not associated with parasitic infection or with diarrhoea. The data show that diarrhoea is a common symptom among HIV-infected patients in Denmark, but do not indicate that the diarrhoea is due to intestinal parasites.

    Original languageEnglish
    JournalScandinavian Journal of Infectious Diseases
    Volume43
    Issue number2
    Pages (from-to)129-35
    Number of pages7
    ISSN0036-5548
    DOIs
    Publication statusPublished - Feb 2011

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