B - 18 Identifying Cognitive Deficits in Perinatally HIV-Infected Children.

Abstract

The systematic review aimed to explore areas of cognitive deficits in children diagnosed with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) through vertical infection. A systematic review of current literature pertaining to cognitive deficits among children with HIV through vertical infection was conducted from 2011 to 2023. Peer-reviewed empirical studies in English were obtained through Google Scholar, PsychInfo, PubMed, and PsychARTICLES using keywords vertical infection, HIV, and children born with HIV. Initial search yielded 50 articles, of which 8 were retained. Across studies, it was found that HIV-infected children present substantial impairments in domains of attention, language, verbal learning and memory, visuomotor functions, fine motor skills, and executive functions. In one study, a cohort of 35 perinatally HIV-infected children was compared to 37 healthy children. Results highlighted that HIV-infected children scored lower than healthy controls on all cognitive domains, with cognitive impairment found in 6 HIV-infected children. Finally, another study found that mean baseline cognitive performance was generally subnormal, and between 33% and 81% of the children possessed subnormal intelligence quotients. While HIV can be treated with immunosuppressive therapy, interventions for cognitive deficits experienced by patients are not very well known. The literature conveyed that the prevalence and extent of deficits when compared to healthy children, is increasingly significant. Although HIV-infected children can have an average intelligence, neurological and neurocognitive performance, and deficits are often prevalent. Limitations of the present review include limited literature focused on this area of study.