Risk for HIV-Related Thrombocytopenia Plunges in the Combination ART Era

The incidence of severe HIV-related thrombocytopenia decreased by 76% over an 18-year period with the use of increasingly effective combination antiretroviral therapy.

Thrombocytopenia was a common complication of HIV infection. To determine how the incidence of severe thrombocytopenia (defined as <50,000 platelets/µL) has changed since the early days of antiretroviral therapy (ART), researchers assessed the incidence and predictors of this condition in HIV-infected patients treated at a clinic in Italy between 1985 and 2012.

The retrospective, single-center study was divided into three periods based on ART strategies: 1985–1989 (no ART/AZT monotherapy), 1990–1996 (dual nucleoside transcriptase inhibitors), and 1997–2012 (combination ART). A total of 5137 patients were included (74% male; mean age, 35; 45% with a history of intravenous drug use [IVDU]); among those with baseline test results available, 8% …

Reviewing Author

Keith Henry, MD

Disclosures

Consultant/Advisory BoardViiV Advisory Board

Editorial BoardsJAIDS: Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndromes

Keith Henry, MD

Disclosures

Consultant/Advisory BoardViiV Advisory Board

Editorial BoardsJAIDS: Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndromes

Risk for HIV-Related Thrombocytopenia Plunges in the Combination ART Era

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Reviewing Author