title: Patients' characteristics and clinical implications of suboptimal CD4 T-cell gains after 1 year of successful antiretroviral therapy.
abstract: To describe characteristics and prognosis of patients with suboptimal immunological response to combined antiretroviral therapy (CART). Using data from a multicenter cohort study, we selected patients who initiated CART and showed suboptimal CD4-T cell response (defined as <50 cells/L increase) after 1 year of therapy, despite sustained virological suppression. Characteristics of those patients were compared with subjects who showed optimal immunological response. Of 650 patients with virological suppression, 108 (16.6%) showed suboptimal CD4-T cell response. Independent predictors of suboptimal response were previous injection drug use (OR, 1.85; 95% CI, 1.12-2.98) and age at CART initiation (OR, 1.04 per year increase; 95%CI, 1.01-1.06). Hepatitis C virus coinfection was not associated with impaired immunological response. As compared with patients with optimal immunological response, those with suboptimal response had a higher mortality rate (3.22 versus 0.71 per 100 person-years; p=.001), but a similar rate of new AIDS-defining events. In patients with sustained virological suppression with CART, previous injection drug use, but not hepatitis C virus coinfection, and older age at initiation of therapy were associated with suboptimal CD4 T-cell responses. Patients with suboptimal response had a higher mortality over time, mainly due to diseases other than AIDS-defining events.
authors.affiliation: Unidad de Enfermedades Infecciosas, Hospital General Universitario de Elche, Universidad Miguel Hernández, Alicante, Spain. gutierrez_fel@gva.es
authors.forename: Félix
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Gutiérrez
authors.forename: Sergio
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Padilla
authors.forename: Mar
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Masiá
authors.forename: José A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Iribarren
authors.forename: Santiago
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Moreno
authors.forename: Pompeyo
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Viciana
authors.forename: José
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Hernández-Quero
authors.forename: Remedios
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Alemán
authors.forename: Francesc
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Vidal
authors.forename: Miguel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Salavert
authors.forename: José R
authors.initials: JR
authors.lastname: Blanco
authors.forename: Manuel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Leal
authors.forename: Fernando
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Dronda
authors.forename: Santiago
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Perez Hoyos
authors.forename: Julia
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: del Amo
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D019380:Anti-HIV Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D018791:CD4 Lymphocyte Count; D015496:CD4-Positive T-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology*; D015331:Cohort Studies; D005260:Female; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000150:complications / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000276:immunology* / Q000401:mortality; D006526:Hepatitis C / Q000276:immunology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011379:Prognosis; D012307:Risk Factors; D015819:Substance Abuse, Intravenous; D016896:Treatment Outcome
chemical_list: D019380:Anti-HIV Agents