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Correlation between Lymphocyte CD4 Count, Treatment Duration, Opportunistic Infection and Cognitive Function in Human
Fasihah Irfani Fitri1, Aldy Safruddin Rambe1, Aida Fitri1
1Department of Neurology, Faculty of Medicine, Universitas Sumatera Utara, Medan, Indonesia.
Background:
Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection is an epidemic worldwide, despite the marked benefits of antiretroviral therapy (ARV) in reducing severe HIV-associated dementia. A milder form of neurocognitive disorders are still prevalent and remain a challenge.
Aim:
This study aimed to determine the correlation between plasma cluster of differentiation 4 (CD4) lymphocyte, duration of ARV treatment, opportunistic infections, and cognitive function in HIV-AIDS patients.
Methods:
A cross-sectional study involving 85 HIV-AIDS patients was conducted at Adam Malik General Hospital Medan, Indonesia. All subjects were subjected to physical, neurologic examination and Montreal Cognitive Assessment-Indonesian Version (MoCA-INA) to assess cognitive function and measurement of lymphocyte CD4 counts.
Results:
Out of the 85 subjects evaluated, the proportion concerning sexes include 52 males (61.2 %) and 33 females (38.8%). The mean age was 38.53 ± 9.77 years old. There was a significant correlation between CD4 lymphocyte counts and MoCA-INA score (r = 0.271, p = 0.012), but there was no significant correlation between duration of ARV treatment and MoCA-INA score. There was also no difference in MoCA-INA score based on the presence of opportunistic infection.
Conclusion:
Lymphocyte CD4 count was independently correlated with cognitive function in HIV-AIDS patients.
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