Table 1.
Demographic and clinical characteristics of HIV-infected children at the time of antiretroviral therapy (ART) initiation in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania between 2004–2010 (n = 3144)
| Characteristic | No. of subjects1 (%) |
|---|---|
| Age (years) | |
| 0 – 2 | 927 (29) |
| >2 – 5 | 687 (22) |
| >5 | 1530 (49) |
| Sex | |
| Male | 1562 (50) |
| Female | 1582 (50) |
| District of residence | |
| Ilala | 1372 (44) |
| Kinondoni | 888 (29) |
| Temeke | 824 (27) |
| Year of ART initiation | |
| 2004 – 2005 | 204 (6) |
| 2006 | 222 (7) |
| 2007 | 617 (20) |
| 2008 | 841 (27) |
| 2009 | 736 (23) |
| 2010 | 524 (17) |
| Underweight (weight-for-age z score <−2SD) | |
| Yes | 1275 (53) |
| No | 1145 (47) |
| Wasting (weight-for-height z score <−2SD if ≤2 years; body-mass index z score <−2 SD if >2 years) | |
| Yes | 990 (33) |
| No | 1976 (67) |
| Stunting (height-for-age z score <−2 SD) | |
| Yes | 1673 (56) |
| No | 1323 (44) |
| Low mid-upper arm circumference (11.5cm if ≤5 years; 16.4 if >5years)2 | |
| Yes | 1222 (39) |
| No | 1880 (61) |
| Severe anemia (Hemoglobin <8.5g/dL) | |
| Yes | 502 (23) |
| No | 1684 (77) |
| Severe immune suppression (CD4+ T-cells<15% if ≤5 years; <200 cells/μL if >5 years)3 | |
| Yes | 1035 (47) |
| No | 1160 (53) |
| WHO disease stage | |
| I | 266 (11) |
| II | 481 (19) |
| III | 1540 (61) |
| IV | 225 (9) |
| History of tuberculosis | |
| Yes | 612 (20) |
| No | 2472 (80) |
| Opportunistic infections4 | |
| Yes | 360 (11) |
| No | 2772 (89) |
| Use of Cotrimoxazole | |
| Yes | 1580 (53) |
| No | 1390 (47) |
| ARV regimen5 | |
| AZT/3TC/NVP | 1075 (52) |
| d4T/3TC/NVP | 615 (30) |
| AZT3TC/EFV | 210 (10) |
| d4T/3TC/EFV | 146 (7) |
| ABC/3TC/LPV | 1 (0.05) |
| ABC/3TC/NFV | 1 (0.05) |
| ARV regimen | |
| Contains stavudine | 761 (37) |
| No stavudine | 1287 (63) |
| ARV regimen | |
| Contains efavirenz | 356 (17) |
| No efavirenz | 1692 (83) |
Numbers may not add up to 3144 due to missing values
There are no established mid-upper arm circumference cut-offs for children >5 years. The 16.4cm reference (10th percentile) was adopted from NHANES (National Health and Nutritional examination Survey) 2003–06 conducted by Centres for Disease Control (CDC), National Centre for Health Statistics (NCHS) (McDowell MA).
Adopted from CDC. Guidelines for Preventing Opportunistic Infections Among HIV-Infected Persons – 2002. MMWR June 14, 2002 (CDC)
Patient having at least one or more of the following; herpes zoster, fungal infection, oral candidiasis, oral hairy leukoplakia, recurrent severe bacterial infection, pneumocystis jirovecii pneumonia, toxoplasmosis, cryptosporidiosis with diarrhea, cryptococcal meningitis, extrapulmonary TB, lymphoma, kaposis sarcoma, HIV encephalopathy
AZT = Zidovudine, d4t = Stavudine, 3TC = Lamivudine, ABC = Abacavir, NVP = nevirapine, EFV = Efavirenz, NFV = Nelfinavir, LPV = lopinavir, Trimu = Triomune (d4t, 3TC, NVP)