In most HIV-infected patients with prior antiretroviral therapy, the combination of indinavir, zidovudine, and lamivudine reduces levels of HIV RNA to less than 500 copies per milliliter for as long as one year.
Key Points
Question
Is there an association between prior diagnosis of HIV infection and coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) diagnosis, hospitalization, and in-hospital death among residents of New York State?
Findings
In a cohort study of linked statewide HIV diagnosis, COVID-19 laboratory diagnosis, and hospitalization databases, persons living with an HIV diagnosis were more likely to receive a diagnosis of, be hospitalized with, and die in-hospital with COVID-19 compared with those not living with an HIV diagnosis. After demographic adjustment, COVID-19 hospitalization remained significantly elevated for individuals with an HIV diagnosis and was associated with elevated mortality.
Meaning
Persons living with an HIV diagnosis experienced poorer COVID-related outcomes (principally, higher rates of severe disease requiring hospitalization) relative to those without an HIV diagnosis.
Background-A large body of evidence suggests that immune system dysregulation is associated with Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) in adults. This study extends this work to adolescent MDD to examine the hypotheses of immune system dysregulation in adolescents with MDD, as manifested by significantly: (i) elevated plasma levels of cytokines (interferon [IFN]-γ, tumor necrosis factor-α, interleukin [IL]-6, IL-1β, and IL-4); and (ii) Th1/Th2 cytokine imbalance shifted toward Th1 as indexed by increased IFN-γ/IL-4.Method-Thirty adolescents with MDD (19 females; 13 medication-free/naïve; ages 12-19) of at least 6 weeks duration and a minimum severity score of 40 on the Children's Depression Rating Scale-Revised, and 15 healthy comparisons (8 females), group-matched for age, were enrolled. Plasma cytokines were examined using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. Mann-Whitney test was used to compare subjects with MDD and controls.Results-Adolescents with MDD had significantly elevated plasma IFN-γ levels (3.38 ± 11.8 pg/ ml versus 0.37 ± 0.64 pg/ml; p<0.003), and IFN-γ/IL-4 ratio (16.6 ± 56.5 versus 1.76 ± 2.28; p = 0.007). A trend for IL-6 to be elevated in the MDD group was also observed (1.52 ± 2.88 pg/ml versus 0.49 ± 0.90 pg/ml; p=0.09). Importantly, findings remained evident when medicated subjects were excluded.Conclusions-Findings suggest that immune system dysregulation may be associated with adolescent MDD, with an imbalance of Th1/Th2 shifted toward Th1, as documented in adult MDD. Larger studies with medication-free adolescents should follow.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.