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Objective: To compare survival and CD4+ T cell % (CD4%) in infants with early versus late HIV viremia. Methods: HIV viremia was measured by HIV culture. PCR or P24 ag assay of peripheral blood. Three groups were identified: infants testing positive within the first week of life (X), infants testing negative in the first week and positive within two months (Y), infants tested after the first week but positive within two months (Z). Initial CD4% for all infants in the three groups were compared using the t test. CD4% attrition in the three groups was compared using linear regressions of the last CD4% measured in each infant. Survival times were evaluated by Kaplan-Meier product-limit analyses and compared by log-rank tests. Results: There were nine infants in group X, 12 in group Y, and 20 in group Z. There were no differences in CD4% at birth among these groups. Decline of CD4% in groups X, Y and Z was -0.30, -0.18 and -3.0% per month respectively. These were not significantly different. Survival in the three groups (X vs Y, log-rank p=0.24; Y vs Z, log-rank p=0.42; X vs Z, log-rank p=0.65) was not significantly different. Conclusions: The data suggest that early HIV-1 viremia in perinatal infection is not associated with more rapid decline of CD4% and decreased survival in this small sample. Further studies must be done to determine whether early HIV viremia in perinatal HIV-1 infection can serve as a prognostic indicator

To evaluate the efficacy of primary chemoprophylaxis in preventing Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia (PCP) in infants with perinatal human immunodeficiency virus-1 infection during the first year of life, we conducted a retrospective chart review of infants with human immunodeficiency virus-1 infection born at New York University Medical Center-Bellevue Hospital Center, in New York. Between March 1989 and March 1993, 24 infants received primary chemoprophylaxis with trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole in the first year of life and 24 infants did not receive primary prophylaxis. The CD4+ T-lymphocyte counts in the two groups did not differ during the first year of life. The median age at the time of initiation of prophylaxis was 3 months, and the average duration of prophylaxis was 5.5 months. Among the infants who had not received prophylaxis, five cases of PCP were diagnosed at a median age of 5 months; in contrast, no cases of PCP were observed in the infants receiving prophylaxis (log-rank test, p = 0.017). The probability of surviving after 1 year of age was 92% for the children who received prophylaxis and 74% for those who did not (log-rank test, p = 0.035). These data indicate that chemoprophylaxis is highly effective in preventing primary PCP and improving survival time in infants with human immunodeficiency virus-1 infection

The purpose of this study was to characterize systemic Streptococcus pneumoniae disease in human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1)-infected children. All cases of bacteremia and meningitis caused by S. pneumoniae among children less than 18 years old were collected by review of the Microbiology Laboratory records at the Bellevue Hospital Center during the period August 1, 1978, through July 31, 1993. There were 31 bouts of systemic S. pneumoniae disease in 19 of 235 HIV-1-infected children cared for by the Pediatric Infectious Disease staff and 116 bouts in 113 children not known to be HIV-1-infected. Four of the 19 HIV-1-infected children had multiple episodes of S. pneumoniae bacteremia as compared with 3 of 113 in the general population (P = 0.008). The frequency of serotypes and distribution of infections by season of the year did not differ between the 2 groups. The median ages at the time of the S. pneumoniae infection were 1.8 and 1.1 years for the HIV-1-infected children and the general population of children, respectively, when those children with multiple episodes were included for their initial episode only (P = 0.06). In the HIV-1-infected patients, 10 episodes were associated with pneumonia, 5 with pneumonia and otitis media, 5 with otitis media only, 1 with pneumonia and meningitis, 1 with meningitis only and 1 with periorbital cellulitis; 5 had no apparent focus of infection. One episode of pneumonia was complicated by lung abscess and there were 2 deaths. Most HIV-1-infected patients recovered without significant sequelae, and the clinical course of their systemic infections did not appear to be markedly different than that of healthy children

Thirty-two (18%) of 181 children cared for at our institution who were infected with the human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1) were first seen, and HIV was diagnosed, when they were 4 years of age and older. Initial complaints or diagnoses for these children included the following: hematologic disorders (5) (3 idiopathic thrombocytopenic purpura, 1 neutropenia, 1 anemia); recurrent bacterial infections (10); Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia (3); developmental delay (1); skin disorders (2) (1 genital wart, 1 chronic zoster); weight loss (3); malignancy (1); and nephropathy (1). Eight children were referred for evaluation because of maternal HIV-1 infection. The risk factors for HIV-1 infection included maternal/perinatal exposure (22), perinatal blood transfusion (6), blood transfusion during infancy (2), and sexual abuse (2). Ten (31%) of the 32 children have subsequently died. The longest survival from perinatal infection was 12 years. HIV-1 infection in children can result in a prolonged clinical latency and can masquerade as other pathologic conditions. The absence of clinical symptoms in older children at risk for HIV-1 infection should not deter HIV testing

OBJECTIVES: To determine whether cell-mediated and humoral immune responses to recall antigens develop in children infected with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and, if so, whether these responses are retained. METHODS: Children infected with HIV and uninfected children born to mothers infected with HIV were compared with respect to lymphoproliferative responses to recall antigens and protective levels of antibody to bacterial toxoids during the first 4 years of life. RESULTS: Children infected with HIV who were enrolled in a prospective study of the natural history of the infection were relatively normal (1) in their lymphoproliferative responses to diphtheria toxoid, tetanus toxoid, and Candida, and (2) in their ability to make protective diphtheria and tetanus antitoxins during the first 2 years of life. During the next 2 years, attrition was noted in both lymphoproliferative and humoral responses. Attrition in response was not necessarily correlated with declining numbers of helper T cells. CONCLUSIONS: These results suggest that both cellular and humoral immune responses develop early in life in most children infected with HIV, while they remain relatively well both clinically and immunologically. Previously reported severe immune deficits in these children were probably attributable to advanced clinical disease when they were first studied

Chronic zoster represents an infrequent presentation of varicella zoster virus infection. It is observed with increased frequency in patients infected with human immunodeficiency virus, especially when their lymphocyte counts are depressed. We report a child infected with human immunodeficiency virus who showed a long-standing cutaneous zoster lesion and was treated for a prolonged period of time with acyclovir. The occurrence of resistance to acyclovir by varicella zoster virus was suspected based on the clinical picture. The clinical and laboratory features of this case and a review of the literature are presented

Among 180 children infected with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV-1), 14 (8%) developed thrombocytopenia during the course of the disease and have been followed for an average period of 18.8 months. Eight of 14 patients had clinical signs of bleeding. Increased levels of anti-platelet IgG antibodies were detected in 86% of patients tested and did not correlate with severity of disease. Eight patients were treated initially with intravenous immunoglobulins (IVIG) and responded with a transient increase in the platelet count of at least 30 x 10(9)/L. Sustained remission could not be achieved in the patients treated with IVIG alone. Corticosteroids were used in 6 patients who became refractory to IVIG and resulted in sustained remission in only one patient. Spontaneous remission of thrombocytopenia occurred in one patient. Ten patients were treated with zidovudine (ZVD) for a period of 3-20 months. Sustained improvement in the platelet counts occurred in only three of the children treated with ZVD

A retrospective review of charts of 156 human immunodeficiency virus-infected children cared for during a 7.5-year period revealed 11 episodes of disseminateed candidiasis (DC) occurring in 11 patients (7%). All 11 patients developed the fungal infection in the context of advanced human immunodeficiency virus infection. All but one were hospital-acquired, occurring at a mean of 2.3 months after admission. Ten patients had been febrile for more than 14 days before diagnosis. Previous oral thrush and central venous catheters (73 and 82% of patients) represented major predisposing factors for development of DC. Neutropenia (2 of 11 patients) did not represent a major risk factor for DC. Candida albicans was isolated in 9 patients, Rhodotorula minuta in 1 patient and 1 fungal isolate could not be identified. Sources of isolation were blood (8 of 11 patients), central venous catheters (3 of 11) and urine (2 of 11). Lungs (6 of 11 patients), esophagus (5 of 11) and brain, heart and kidneys (3 patients each) were the organs most often involved in DC. Antemortem diagnosis was achieved in only 7 (64%) patients; none of the 4 patients with DC diagnosed postmortem had been treated before death. Seven patients were treated with amphotericin B; 6 of them died but only 3 were treated for more than 7 days of therapy. The overall mortality was 90% (10 of 11 patients). In all 20% of the 50 human immunodeficiency virus-infected children who died at our hospital during the study period had an episode of DC in close proximity to their death. DC was considered the direct cause of death in 4 of 10 children