Impact of Routine Plasma HIV RNA Determinations on Antiretroviral Therapy of Children with Perinatal HIV Infection † 848

Abstract

A retrospective record review was made of virologic, immunologic and clinical data obtained over the first year (1996) during which testing for plasma HIV RNA levels was a routine procedure at the University of Texas Hermann Hospital for the purpose of identification of characteristics associated with progressing or regressing infection. At one year after the introduction of HIV RNA testing, patients were classified based on changes in plasma HIV RNA as having increased (progression, P), waning (regression, R) or unchanged (stable, S) levels of infection. Classification as P or R was based on a change of >0.5 log10 HIV RNA copies/ml between first and year-end determinations. Notable findings (Table) included that patients with low levels of entry HIV RNA comprised the majority of progressors, that increased HIV RNA associated with a decline in CD4 and that progressors were less likely to receive treatment with combined antiretrovial drugs or have had their antiretroviral therapy regimen changed during the year.