Associations of HIV testing and late diagnosis at a Japanese university hospital.

objectivesThis study was conducted to clarify the rate of late diagnosis of HIV infection and to identify relationships between the reasons for HIV testing and a late diagnosis.

methodsThis retrospective cohort study was conducted among HIV-positive patients at the Jikei University Hospital between 2001 and 2014. Patient characteristics from medical records, including age, sex, sexuality, the reason for HIV testing and the number of CD4-positive lymphocytes at HIV diagnosis, were assessed.

resultsA total of 459 patients (men, n=437; 95.2%) were included in this study and the median age at HIV diagnosis was 36 years (range, 18-71 years). Late (CD4 cell count <350/mm3) and very late (CD4 cell count <200/mm3) diagnoses were observed in 61.4% (282/459) and 36.6% (168/459) of patients, respectively. The most common reason for HIV diagnosis was voluntary testing (38.6%, 177/459 patients), followed by AIDS-defining illness (18.3%, 84/459 patients). Multivariate analysis revealed a significant association of voluntary HIV testing with non-late and non-very-late diagnoses and there was a high proportion of AIDS-defining illness in the late and very late diagnosis groups compared with other groups. Men who have sex with men was a relative factor for non-late diagnosis, whereas nonspecific abnormal blood test results, such as hypergammaglobulinemia and thrombocytopenia, were risk factors for very late diagnosis.

conclusionsVoluntary HIV testing should be encouraged and physicians should screen all patients who have symptoms or signs and particularly hypergammaglobulinemia and thrombocytopenia, that may nonspecifically indicate HIV infection.