Visceral leishmaniasis and HIV in Tigray, Ethiopia.
OBJECTIVE
To identify characteristics that increased the risk of mortality in Ethiopian visceral leishmaniasis patients in a treatment programme managed by Médecins sans Frontières, in Tigray, Northern Ethiopia.


METHODS
Retrospective review of a cohort of 791 patients treated for visceral leishmaniasis.


RESULTS
The cohort displayed all the classical signs and symptoms of the disease. The case fatality rate was 18.5% (146) (95% CI: 15.8-21.3%). Logistic regression showed that individuals who experienced at least one episode of vomiting or haemorrhage were more likely to die than those who did not. A subcohort of individuals who tested human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-positive were more than four times more likely to die than those who tested HIV-negative (OR 4.5, 95% CI: 1.8-11.4).


CONCLUSIONS
This study identifies characteristics associated with death in this population and highlights the devastating effect of co-infection with visceral leishmaniasis and HIV in the African context.
Lyons
Suzi
S
Department of Public Health and Epidemiology, UCD, National University of Ireland, Dublin, Ireland. suzanne.lyons@ucd.ie
Veeken
Hans
H
Long
Jean
J
D017088:AIDS-Related Opportunistic Infections / Q000150:complications / Q000401:mortality*; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D002648:Child; D002675:Child, Preschool; D016021:Epidemiologic Studies; D005002:Ethiopia / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D006470:Hemorrhage / Q000469:parasitology; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007898:Leishmaniasis, Visceral / Q000150:complications / Q000401:mortality*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D016017:Odds Ratio; D011379:Prognosis; D014839:Vomiting / Q000469:parasitology