Open AccessAntiretroviral therapy outcomes among adolescents and young adults in a Tertiary Hospital in Kenya
Author(s) -
Patrick Mburugu,
Peter Muiruri,
Nelly Opiyo,
Justus Simba,
Jane Adunda,
Rosemary Kawira,
Onesmus Gachuno
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
african health sciences
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.391
H-Index - 44
eISSN - 1729-0503
pISSN - 1680-6905
DOI - 10.4314/ahs.v21i.2s
Subject(s) - medicine , young adult , viral load , pediatrics , antiretroviral therapy , tertiary care , human immunodeficiency virus (hiv) , medical record , cohort , cohort study , retrospective cohort study , immunology
Background: Limited data is available on the treatment outcomes of HIV infected adolescents and young adults (AYA) in sub-Saharan Africa. HIV-infected adolescents and young adults (AYA) are at high risk of developing antiretroviral treatment failure.
Objective: To determine the clinical, immunological and virologic outcomes of AYA at a tertiary hospital in Kenya.
Methodology: A longitudinal study was conducted among AYA age 10-24 years attending Kenyatta National Hospital comprehensive care center. Clinical data was abstracted from electronic medical records for study participants with at least 6 months of follow-up using a structured data abstraction sheet.
Results: A total of 250 AYA age 10 to 24 years were included. The median age was 16 years. The median CD4 cell count was 650.6 cells/mm3 (IQR 350.7-884.0). More than half (60.6%) of AYA had a CD4 cell count higher than 500 cells/mm3. Overall, 76.9% of AYA had achieved viral suppression (viral load 1000 copies/ ml p<0.012.
Conclusion: The overall virologic suppression in this cohort of AYA was sub-optimal. Both immunological and virologic outcomes were worse among late adolescents (18-19 years) and young adults (20-24 years).
Keywords: Adolescents; HIV; Kenya; virologic suppression; young adults.