Presenting CD4-Cell Count Is Rising, but Slowly

HIV-infected patients classified as “late presenters” face, by definition, a delay in initiation of antiretroviral therapy (ART) and, at a population level, may increase overall HIV incidence and costs of care. Researchers have now analyzed data from nearly 170,000 HIV-infected patients in 44 studies in the U.S., Canada, and Europe, to identify trends in CD4-cell count presentation from 1992 through 2011 (the studies were published from 2000 through 2011).

The analysis showed an increase in mean CD4-cell count at presentation of about 1.5 cells/mm³ per year, from 307 cells/mm³ in 1992 to 336 cells/mm³ in 2011. The estimated changes in the percentage of patients who presented with advanced disease (CD4 count <200 cells/mm³) and in those who p…