title: The effects of HIV-2 infection in a rural area of Guinea-Bissau.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate the clinical and immunologic effects, and pattern of mortality associated with HIV-2 infection.
  
  
  METHODS
  A rural community in Guinea-Bissau.
  
  
  METHODS
  Serologic screening of 2774 subjects aged > 14 years followed by studies of the prevalence of clinical and immunologic abnormalities among 133 subjects with HIV-2 infection and 160 seronegative controls, and surveillance of mortality among all subjects who were screened during a mean of 2 years of follow-up.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Generalized lymphadenopathy was the only clinical abnormality significantly associated with HIV-2 infection. Infection was associated with lower CD4 counts and higher beta 2-microglobulin and neopterin levels. During follow-up, 5.5% of infected subjects died compared with 1.8% of the seronegatives (rate ratio adjusted for age and sex, 3.5; 95% confidence interval ((CI), 1.8-6.7). Proportional hazard regression analysis showed that the rate ratio varied with age (P = 0.003) and there was some evidence that the excess of mortality in infected subjects was, in absolute terms, least in the oldest subjects (trend test; P = 0.08).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The findings support previous suggestions that HIV-2 is less pathogenic than HIV-1; the data also suggest that mortality associated with infection may be lower in older subjects.
authors.affiliation: Medical Research Council Laboratories, Banjul, The Gambia.
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Ricard
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Wilkins
authors.forename: P T
authors.initials: PT
authors.lastname: N'Gum
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Hayes
authors.forename: G
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Morgan
authors.forename: A P
authors.initials: AP
authors.lastname: Da Silva
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Whittle
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D001708:Biopterins / Q000031:analogs & derivatives / Q000097:blood; D018791:CD4 Lymphocyte Count; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006169:Guinea-Bissau / Q000453:epidemiology; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000097:blood / Q000276:immunology* / Q000401:mortality; D015528:HIV Seroprevalence; D015498:HIV-2; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D019798:Neopterin; D012424:Rural Population / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D001613:beta 2-Microglobulin / Q000032:analysis
chemical_list: D001613:beta 2-Microglobulin; D001708:Biopterins; D019798:Neopterin