Ocular Manifestations in Patients with Human Immunodeficiency Virus Infection in the Pre-HAART Versus the HAART Era in the North Indian Population

ABSTRACT

Purpose: To compare changes in the demographic profile and ocular manifestations in patients with HIV in the pre-HAART and HAART era in North India.

Methods: In this single-center cross-sectional study, 100 HIV patients receiving HAART and 96 HIV patients in the pre-HAART era were enrolled. Prevalence of ocular manifestations of HIV was calculated for both cohorts.

Results: The prevalence of ocular manifestations was not statistically different in the two eras (38%, SE: 4.85% in HAART era; 41.67%, SE: 5% in pre-HAART era) (p = 0.60). Mean CD4 counts were lower in the pre-HAART era compared with the HAART era (p < 0.001). In the HAART era, cytomegalovirus (CMV) retinitis and HIV retinopathy continued to remain the most common infectious and non-infectious cause of visual morbidity.

Conclusions: While the introduction of HAART has resulted in a major impact on the overall health of patients with HIV, the spectrum of ocular disease remains largely unchanged in developing countries such as India.

Keywords:

• AIDS
• cytomegalovirus retinitis
• HAART
• HIV retinopathy
• India
• pre-HAART era

ACKNOWLEDGMENT

Presented in part as a poster in the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) Meeting, 2011.

FUNDING

The Stanley M. Truhlsen Eye Institute has received an unrestricted grant from Research to Prevent Blindness (RPB), New York, NY, USA.

DECLARATION OF INTEREST

The authors report no conflicts of interest. The authors alone are responsible for the content and writing of the paper.

Additional information

Funding

The Stanley M. Truhlsen Eye Institute has received an unrestricted grant from Research to Prevent Blindness (RPB), New York, NY, USA.