Cutaneous manifestations of human immunodeficiency virus/Aids patients in Albania

• Published in: International journal of applied and basic medical research Vol. 9; no. 4; pp. 197 - 200
• Main Authors: Shehu, Erjona, Harxhi, Arjan, Simaku, Artan
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: India Wolters Kluwer India Pvt. Ltd 01.10.2019; Medknow Publications and Media Pvt. Ltd; Medknow Publications & Media Pvt. Ltd; Wolters Kluwer - Medknow
• Subjects: Acquired immune deficiency syndrome; AIDS; Ambulatory care facilities; Bacterial infections; Developing countries; Diseases; Drug resistance; Drug therapy; Health aspects; Hepatitis; HIV; HIV infections; HIV patients; Human immunodeficiency virus; Immune system; Infection; Infections; LDCs; Medical research; Methicillin; Original; Patients; Quality of life; Skin diseases; Syphilis; Variables; Viral infections; Albania; United States > US; opportunistic infections; human immunodeficiency virus/AIDS; Cutaneous manifestations
• ISSN: 2229-516X; 2248-9606
• DOI: 10.4103/ijabmr.IJABMR_287_18

Context: Dermatologic diseases are common in the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected population. Cutaneous manifestations of HIV disease may result from HIV infection itself or from opportunistic disorders secondary to the declined immunocompetence due to the disease. Aims: The aim of this study is to determine the pattern of c0utaneous manifestations in HIV in an adult HIV Clinic in Tirana. Subjects and Methods: This is a retrospective study including 355 HIV-positive patients with cutaneous manifestations who referred to the Ambulatory Clinic for HIV/AIDS, at the Infective Service and Dermatology Service of University Hospital Centre "Mother Theresa," Tirana, Albania over the period 2008-2015. Results: The mean age of patients was 43.08 (±11.8) years, with a range 15-79 years. Two hundred and forty-seven (69.6%) of patients were male and 108 (30.4%) female. Male-to-female ratio is 2.3:1. The study found a significant trend of increasing incidence of dermatological pathologies with increasing stage of the disease. Fifty-five (15.5%) of patients with cutaneous lesions were in Stage 1, 132 (37.2%) in Stage 2, and 168 (47.4%) in Stage 3 (P < 0.001). As for the HIV transmission method, the majority of patients (71%) were infected through heterosexual contact, followed by homosexual contact (16.3%), blood transfusion (3.4%), injecting drug user (2.3%), while for 7% of patients the mode of transmission was unknown. Conclusions: Early recognition of the cutaneous manifestation can help in better management of HIV infection in resource-poor setting, as it can indicate the progression of the disease and underlying immune status.