title: CD4+ T-cell count monitoring does not accurately identify HIV-infected adults with virologic failure receiving antiretroviral therapy.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  CD4 T-lymphocyte (CD4) counts are widely used to monitor response to antiretroviral therapy (ART) in resource-limited settings. However, the utility of such monitoring in terms of predicting virologic response to therapy has been little studied.
  
  
  METHODS
  We studied participants aged 18 years and older who initiated ART in Tororo, Uganda. CD4 counts, CD4 percentages, and viral load (VL) were examined at 6-monthly intervals. Various definitions of immunologic failure were examined to identify individuals with VLs>or=50, >or=500, >or=1000, or >or=5000 copies per milliliter at 6, 12, and 18 months after treatment initiation.
  
  
  RESULTS
  One thousand sixty-three ART-naive persons initiated ART. The proportion of individuals with virologic failure ranged between 1.5% and 16.4% for each time point. The proportion with no increase in CD4 count from baseline did not differ between those with suppressed or unsuppressed VLs at 6, 18, and 24 months after ART initiation. No increase in CD4 cell counts at 6 months had a sensitivity of 0.04 [95% confidence interval (CI) 0.00 to 0.10] and a positive predictive value of 0.03 (95% CI 0.00 to 0.09) for identifying individuals with VL>or=500 copies per milliliter at 6 months. The best measure identified was an absolute CD4 cell count<125 cells per microliter at 21 months for predicting VL>or=500 copies per milliliter at 18 months which had a sensitivity of 0.13 (95% CI 0.01 to 0.21) and a positive predictive value of 0.29 (95% CI 0.10 to 0.44).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  CD4 cell count monitoring does not accurately identify individuals with virologic failure among patients taking ART.
authors.affiliation: Global AIDS Program, US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Entebbe, Uganda. dmoore@cfenet.ubc.ca
authors.forename: David M
authors.initials: DM
authors.lastname: Moore
authors.forename: Anna
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Awor
authors.forename: Robert
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Downing
authors.forename: Jonathan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Kaplan
authors.forename: Julio S G
authors.initials: JS
authors.lastname: Montaner
authors.forename: John
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Hancock
authors.forename: Willy
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Were
authors.forename: Jonathan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Mermin
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D044966:Anti-Retroviral Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D018791:CD4 Lymphocyte Count; D005260:Female; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000276:immunology* / Q000821:virology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D019562:Viral Load
chemical_list: D044966:Anti-Retroviral Agents