We analyzed IL-2 and IL-10 serum levels in 26 HIV-1-infected patients naive of antiretroviral treatment and in 34 patients receiving highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART). All patients without treatment were asymptomatic. When they were stratified according to levels of CD4+ T cells, IL-2 levels were significantly increased in patients with > or =200 CD4+/microl and IL-10 levels were significantly increased in patients with <200 CD4+/microl compared to controls. A significant negative correlation was observed between IL10 levels and CD4+ T-cell counts. No correlation was observed between IL-2 and IL-10 levels and viral load due to the wide range of variability in the number of HIV copies/ml present in the different patients. However, IL-2 levels were higher in patients with high viral load than in patients with low viral load. In patients with HAART, IL-2 and IL-10 levels were similar to the control group and no differences were detected respecting CD4+ T cells counts and viral load. Our findings show that the modifications in IL-2 and IL-10 serum levels in HIV-1-infected patients naive of antiretroviral treatment are associated with the progression of immunological damage. Furthermore, they show a dysbalance of type-1/type-2 cytokines with an involvement of type-2 cytokines in later stages of HIV infection. Cytokine dysregulation can be reversed by HAART in the context of immune restoration and viral suppression.

La sífilis, aun siendo fácil de diagnosticar y tratar, es causa de morbilidad y mortalidad en el mundo y su prevalencia sigue en aumento. Objetivos: Determinar la proporción de infectados con Treponema pallidum según sexo y edad y su relación con factores de riesgo. Métodos: 148 pacientes (47% varones, 53% mujeres, entre 16 y 60 años), pruebas de VDRL y ELISA, registro de datos demográficos, clínicos, conductas de riesgo. Resultados: primera prueba de VDRL en el 78,38% de los participantes. Casos de sífilis confirmados: 10 (6,76%); 70% mujeres, entre ellas 57,4% embarazadas; 70% entre 16 y 24 años de edad; 50% con nivel secundario completo y con VDRL previa; 70% con pareja sexual estable; edad temprana de inicio de actividad sexual (≤ 16); ausencia de uso de preservativo siempre. Conclusión: Se evidencia la necesidad de realizar controles serológicos e implementar un abordaje interdisciplinario en la prevención y tratamiento, principalmente en jóvenes.

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