Open AccessTime trends and correlates of late presentation for HIV care in Northern Greece during the decade 2000 to 2010
Author(s) -
Metallidis Simeon,
Pilalas Dimitrios,
Skoura Lemonia,
Haidich AnnaBettina,
Tsachouridou Olga,
Papaioannou Maria,
Chrysanthidis Theofilos,
Bakaimi Isidora,
Antoniadou Zoe A,
Margariti Apostolia,
Malisiovas Nicolaos,
Nikolaidis Pavlos
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
journal of the international aids society
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.724
H-Index - 62
ISSN - 1758-2652
DOI - 10.7448/ias.15.2.17395
Subject(s) - medicine , concordance , psychological intervention , logistic regression , population , disease , demography , pediatrics , family medicine , gerontology , environmental health , psychiatry , sociology
Background The aim of our study was to assess the extent of late presentation for HIV care in Northern Greece during the period 2000 to 2010 and to explore correlations aiming to provide guidance for future interventions. Methods HIV‐positive patients with no prior history of HIV care at presentation and with a CD4 T cell count within three months from the first confirmatory Western blot result were eligible for this study. Late presentation and advanced HIV disease were defined in concordance with the recommendations of the European Late Presenter Consensus working group. Time trends in presentation status and risk factors linked to late presentation and advanced HIV disease were identified in multivariable logistic regression models. Additional analyses after multiple imputation of missing values were performed to assess the robustness of our findings. Results The status at presentation was evaluated for 631 eligible HIV‐positive individuals. Overall, 52.5% (95% CI: 48.6% to 56.4%) of patients presented late for HIV care and 31.2% (95% CI: 27.6% to 34.8%) presented with advanced HIV disease. Time trends were consistent with an improvement in the presentation status of our study population ( p< 0.001). Risk factors associated with late presentation in multivariable logistic regression were intravenous drug use, heterosexual HIV transmission, immigrant status and age at diagnosis. Conclusions Despite the trend for improvement, a significant proportion of newly diagnosed HIV‐positive patients present late for care. Targeted interventions with focus on social groups such as the elderly, persons who inject drugs, immigrants and individuals at risk for heterosexual HIV transmission are mandated.