Table 1. Characteristics of study participants.
| Variable | HIV-infected participants (242) % (n) | HIV-seronegative individuals (249) % (n) | P-value |
| Age (mean±SE) | 41.2±0.5 | 42.5±0.6 | 0.10 |
| Age, years by group | |||
| 30–39 | 119 (49.2) | 117 (47.0) | |
| 40–49 | 81 (33.5) | 79 (31.7) | 0.54 |
| >50 | 42 (17.4) | 53 (21.3) | |
| Male gender | 25.6 (62) | 24.1 (60) | 0.70 |
| Working location | |||
| Indoors | 35.1 (85) | 28.1 (70) | 0.10 |
| Income | |||
| >ZAR1000/month | 42.2 (102) | 31.7 (79) | 0.02 |
| Smoking status | |||
| Non-smoker | 85.5 (207) | 72.7 (181) | 0.001 |
| <10 years | 4.6 (11) | 12.9 (32) | |
| >10 years | 9.9 (43) | 14.5 (36) | |
| Alcohol | |||
| Yes | 30.2 (73) | 44.2 (110) | 0.001 |
| History of eye condition | |||
| Yes | 16.9 (41) | 9.3 (23) | 0.01 |
| Visual acuity (presenting) | 20/25 | 20/20 | 0.68 |
| % with visual acuity <20/40 | 6.2 (15) | 10.0 (25) | 0.12 |
| HIV-related characteristics (n = 242) | |||
| WHO stage | |||
| 1/2 | 27.3 (66) | ||
| 3/4 | 72.7 (176) | ||
| ART* naïve | 12.0 (29) | ||
| CD4 count in ART naïve group (n = 29) | 170 (84–201) | ||
| Log10VL in ART naïve group (n = 19) | 4.81 (4.11–5.14) | ||
| Current CD4 count in ART group, µl (n = 213) | 468 (325–607) | ||
| Nadir CD4 count in ART group, µl | 127 (76–171) | ||
| % with detectable VL in ART group | 16.0 (34) | ||
| Peak Log10VL in ART group | 4.56 (3.85–4.98) | ||
| Duration of ART, months | 58 (34–75) | ||
| ART Regimen | |||
| Containing AZT/3TC | 59.6 (127) | ||
| Other | 40.3 (86) |
*
ART = Anti-retroviral therapy