Increased risk of wasting syndrome in HIV-infected travellers: prospective multicentre study

✍ Scribed by Hansjakob Furrer; Phil Chan; Rainer Weber; Matthias Egger; The Swiss HIV Cohort Study

• Publisher: Elsevier Science
• Year: 2001
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 394 KB
• Volume: 95
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0035-9203
• DOI: 10.1016/s0035-9203(01)90011-2

✦ Synopsis

HIV-infected patients from moderate regions who travel in tropical countries may experience clinical disease progression due to exposure to bacteria (including mycobacteria), fungi and parasites. In the Swiss HIV Cohort Study we examined the hypothesis that travelling increases the risk of tuberculosis, wasting syndrome, cryptosporidiosis, isosporiasis, cryptococcosis, coccidiomycosis, histoplasmosis and Salmonella septicaemia. A total of 4549 participants were included (in 1988-98) ofwhom 596 (13' 1%) travelled at least once. During 16 800 person-years of follow-up 23 1 patients developed at least 1 of the diseases of interest. Wasting syndrome was the only diagnosis significantly associated with travelling (hazard ratio 2.16, 95% confidence interval 1.09 to 4.30). The risk ofwasting syndrome ('slim disease') should be taken into account when counselling HIV-infected patients intending to travel in tropical regions.