Original Research Article Hematological Abnormalities in Febrile HIV-Infected Patients and Factors Related to Them

Hematological abnormalities, such as anemia, neutropenia, and thrombocytopenia, are commonly observed in patients infected with HIV. The aim of the study was to evaluate the frequency of hematological abnormalities in HIV patients, and to evaluate the correlation of them with CD4 cell number. Methods: Cross-sectional retrospective study. Multiple logistic regression methods were used to identify risk factors for hematological abnormalities. Results: A total of 82.4 % of patients (108/131) had anemia at the moment of evaluation. The prevalence of anemia was 83.3 % in female patients and 82.1 % in male persons. 89 % of patients had anemia in the low CD4 group and 52.9 % in the high CD4 group (p = 0.001). In multivariate logistic regression analysis CD4 < 200 cells/mm 3 had large independent associations with anemia, and HAART use decreases the risk of anemia. Lymphopenia was noted in 63.4%, neutropenia in 2.29%, and thrombocytopenia in 6.1 % of the patients. Conclusions: Anemia was more common than neutropenia or thrombocytopenia in the HIV-infected patients. In view of the high prevalence of haematological disorders among HIV patients, it is strongly recommended that all HIV patients be investigated and treated for these disorders