Clinical and immunological impact of HIV in HIV-exposed uninfected (HEU) children
Keywords:
HIV, immunity, vaccines, neurodevelopmentAbstract
Introduction: The population of HIV-exposed uninfected children (HEU) is growing worldwide and presents a higher risk of morbidity and mortality, alterations in growth and development and in the immune response, compared with the unexposed population. Objective: To characterize the HEU population clinically and immunologically. Patients and methods: Descriptive, observational, cross-sectional study. HEU patients treated at «Sor María Ludovica» Children's Hospital, La Plata, during 2023 were included. Clinical variables (weight and height, development, infections, hospitalizations, mortality) and laboratory variables (anemia, cellular and humoral immunity, response to vaccination) were assessed. Results: Thirty-eight HEU children were evaluated (median age 1.5 years; IQR 0.7–3). Five children were overweight and 11 obese. Fifteen patients (39.4 %) required hospitalization, mainly due to respiratory infections. Lymphocyte populations were altered in all subtypes, with CD19+ predominating. Failure to respond to inactivated calendar vaccines was detected in 17 patients (44.7 %). Hypogammaglobulinemia (−1/−2 SD) associated with partial vaccine response was found in 4 children (10 %). Conclusions: All patients presented alterations in cellular immunity, with CD19+ lymphocytes the most frequently compromised. A significant percentage had failure to respond to inactivated calendar vaccines.
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Por tratarse de datos clínicos de pacientes pediátricos con infección por VIH, la información que respalda este estudio no se encuentra disponible públicamente a fin de resguardar la privacidad y confidencialidad de los participantes. Los datos agregados y no identificables podrán ser solicitados al autor de correspondencia con una justificación apropiada.
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