MUCO-CUTANEOUS MANIFESTATIONS IN HIV INFECTED CHILDREN AND ITS CORRELATION WITH THE CD4 COUNT

Abstract

Background Dermatological manifestations increase both in frequency and severity with the progression of HIV and thus can serve as important markers of disease progression. Early recognition of such dermatological manifestations is important for an early diagnosis and also to assess the prognosis of HIV infection Objective The objective was to determine the cutaneous manifestations among HIV children and its correlation to clinical staging and the level of immunosuppression. Material and Methods The study was a cross sectional study conducted in the Department of Pediatrics, Dr. RML Hospital, New Delhi. The study population included all the HIV infected children.A total of 102 study participants were recruited. Absolute counts of CD4,CD8 and ratio of CD4/CD8 and Tzanck smear, KOH preparation, and skin scrapings was done. Chi square tests and independent t test was applied. P value of <0.05 is considered to be significant. Results The age of study participants ranged from one and half years to 17 years with a mean(SD) of 10.54 (± 11). The median age was 3.58. Males were 73.5% and females were 26.5%. Most of the patients were in WHO stage I. Prevalence of mucocutaneous manifestation was 16.7%. Lower mean CD4 counts and lower total leucocyte counts were associated with higher incidence of mucocutaneous lesions. (p value <0.05) Conclusion The prevalence of muco cutaneous manifestation increases with decline in CD4 count. Hence muco cutaneous manifestations can be taken as the marker of deteriorating immune status of patients.