Respiratory Viral Infection and Hiv Viral Load and Cd4+ Cells Count of Hiv Infected Children Attending Selected Clinics in Southwest, Nigeria

Abstract

<title>Abstract</title> Most often, respiratory viruses have been linked with opportunistic infections among HIV positive patients, owing to their immunocompromised state. Blood samples of 590 HIV positive children between the ages of 4 and 18 years attending selected health facilities in Southwest, Nigeria were serologically screened for their co-infection with some selected lower respiratory viruses. HIV was detected using rapid antibody test kit (combi) and further confirmed using Enzyme Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA) technique to detect the HIV-IgG and IgM concentration. The presence of respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), influenza A virus (IV) and parainfluenza virus (PIV) in the HIV positive blood samples were analyzed and detected using reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) amplification. The HIV viral loads were determined using Cobas auto analyzer while the CD4⁺ T-cell lymphocyte count was done using a partec cytoflow counter. 56.94% of the HIV positive children were positive to either of the respiratory viruses, out of which 26.10%, 16.27% and 12.54% were positive for RSV, IV and PIV respectively. RSV showed a higher risk relationship with the HIV CD4⁺ count (38.31%) compared to the other respiratory viruses. The relationship between the HIV viral load and co-infection with the respiratory viruses in this study is linear, which further explains the role of viral reactivation in immunocompromised HIV patients.