Psychiatric issues and emergencies in HIV infection

Emergency departments are frequently the entry point for patients infected with HIV. Psychiatric conditions may be the initial predominant presentation or an important concomitant factor. Because of the complexities of HIV infection, the serious medical nature of its associated psychiatric complications, the frequent presence of comorbid substance use and other behavioral disorders, and the multiple sites of treatment involved, psychiatrists, emergency physicians, and other professionals must work in collaboration in screening patients infected with HIV for mental disorders and in providing careful and rational care.