HIV Flashcards
How many new cases of HIV are diagnosed annually?
650000 - 1.5 million
How many people in total have died due to HIV?
> 40 million
In high burden HIV settings who should be offered routine HIV testing?
HIV testing should be offered to all populations and in all services (for example, services for sexually transmitted infections, hepatitis, TB, children under five, immunization, malnutrition, antenatal care and all services for key populations) as an efficient and effective way to identify people with HIV.
What diagnostics should be used to diagnose children under the age of 18 months with suspected HIV?
Point of Care NATs
**Cannot use antigen/antibody or antibody tests at these age, because maternal antibodies can still be found in infant blood up to 18 months; would give you a false +ve result
What three infectious diseases should all pregnant woman be screened for as early as possible/
HIV
syphilis
hepatitis B (surface antigen (HBsAg)a)
What is the WHO three test-strategy?
all people in low prevelence areas (<5%) presenting for HIV testing services should have three consecutive reactive test results in order to receive an HIV-positive diagnosis.
What is the WHO two-test strategy?
all people in high prevalence areas (>5%) presenting for HIV testing services should have two consecutive reactive test results in order to receive an HIV-positive diagnosis.
How can you reduce risk of HIV spreading within populations?
- encourage condom use
- offer safe needle exchanges for injecting drugs users
- Voluntary Male Medical Circumcision
Apart from regular oral PrEP, what simple device can be given to women who are at high risk of acquiring HIV (i.e. transactional sex)
dapivirine vaginal ring
(An insert which contains locally acting prep; contains an NNRTI)
What is the recommended regime for PEP?
TDF + 3TC/FTC + DTG
Tenofovir + Lamivudine / emtricitabine + Dolutegravir
OD for 28/7
What is TDF?
Tenofovir
What is 3TC?
Lamivudine
What is FTC?
Emtricitabine
What is DTG
Dolutegravir
What is the recommended PEP regime in children under 10?
AZT/ZDT + 3TC + DTG
AZT/ZDV: Zidovudine + Lamivudine + Dolutegravir
Tenofovir is used as a rescue drug rather than first line in kids
What is AZT/ZDV
Zidovudine
What is the most effective way to reduce maternal transmission of HIV?
Early ART –> reduce viral load as much as possible
What chemoprophylaxis should be given to infants of mothers with HIV?
Daily NVP for 6/52
Nevirapine
What is NVP?
Nevirapine
When should ART be commenced in the context of TB co-infection?
within two weeks of initiating TB treatment, regardless of CD4 cell count, among people living with HIV
When should ART be commenced in the context of Cryptococcal meningitis co-infection?
Immediate ART initiation is not recommended for adults, adolescents and children living with HIV who have cryptococcal meningitis because of the risk of increased mortality
Treatment should be deferred by 4–6 weeks from the initiation of antifungal treatment
What test should you use to monitor HIV progress?
Viral Load
If viral load not available then CD4 count and clinical monitoring is advised
How often should you check the viral load in a patient?
6 months –> 12 months
Can continue 12 monthly is established on a good ART regime
How should you diagnosis Cryptococcal meningitis in HIV +ve patients?
prompt lumbar puncture with measurement of CSF opening pressure
cryptococcal antigen assay (CrAG)
** if CrAG not available then use India Ink test
When should you Screen for cryptococcal infection in HIV +ve patients?
When CD4 count is <100
Consider starting prophylactic antifungal (fluconazole) prior to starting ART if CrAg is positive but NO EVIDENCE of meningitis
What are the side effects of L-AMB?
hypokalaemia,
nephrotoxicity and anaemia
How do you treat Cryptococcal meningitis?
INDUCTION: 1/52 of:
- Liposomal Amphotericin B (STAT) + Flucytosine (100mg/kg/day in 4 divided doses)
+ Fluconazole 1200mg
CONSOLIDATION: 8/52 of:
Fluconazole 800mg OD
±
MAINTENANCE longterm fluconazole 200mg OD if CD4 continues to be low (<200) and viral load is managed
**Taken from updated WHO guidelines 2022
Are steroid recommended in the acute management of cryptococcal meningitis?
No - not recommended
What is the gold standard diagnostic for Histoplasmosis?
Serum Histoplasma antigen test
How do you manage Histoplasmosis infection?
Liposomal Amphotericin B 3mg/kg for 2/52
+
Itraconazole 200mg BD for 12/12 (Less than 12 months of therapy can be considered when the person is clinically stable, receiving ART, has suppressed viral load and the immune status has improved)
When should HIV +ve patients be given co-trimoxazole?
- HIV +ve people (including pregnant women) in malaria endemic areas
- General population (including pregnant women) with WHO stage 3/4 disease or CD4 <350
- All infants, children and adolescents with HIV, irrespective of CD4 count/disease status
- HIV and concurrent active TB
When and how should you screen HIV patients for TB?
At every clinical encounter
Screen using the 4 symptoms screening tool:
? Fever
? Cough
? Weight loss
? Night sweats
±CRP (<5)
±CXR (can be reported by automated system)
What can be used to treat LTBI infection in HIV +ve patients
Treatment is the same as the general populations
6/12 or 9/12 Isoniazid
3/12 Rifampicin/isoniazid daily
3/12 Rifapentine/isoniazid weekly
What chemoprophylaxis should be offered to HIV patients who are at high risk of TB (i.e. endemic area)
36/12 Isoniazid (daily)
Which ART is recommended in HIV/HBV co-infection?
Tenofovir
Which anti-malarial ACT should be avoided in HIV +ve people on co-trimoxazole
Artesunate - sulfadoxine-pyrimethamine (SP)
Which treatment should be used in patients with HIV + Visceral Leishmaniasis?
Liposomal amphotericin B + miltefosine regimen
Should HIV+ve women breastfeed?
Mothers living with HIV should breastfeed for at least 12 months and may continue breastfeeding for up to 24 months or longer (similar to the general population) while being fully supported for ART adherence
How can you encourage adherence to ART?
- peer counsellors
- mobile phone text message reminders
- reminder devices
- cognitive behavioural therapy
- behavioural skills training or medication adherence training
- fixed-dose combinations and once-daily regimens
What kind of virus is HIV?
RNA Retrovirus
What two strains of HIV are there?
HIV-1 (common)
HIV-2 (uncommon; <5% of cases, West Africa only)
What are the main virological components of the HIV Virus?
Enveloped, conical nucleocapsid
Main enzymes: Reverse transcriptase, integrase, protease
Main glycoproteins: gp120, gp41
Why can you never completely eradicate HIV?
The virus replicates rapidly initially and develops reservoirs in latent immune cells and in anatomical sanctuary sites, meaning you can never completely get rid of it. As soon as you stop ART the virus will re-start to replicate
What is the 95-95-95 UNAIDS target?
95% of people know their HIV status
95% of people with confirmed HIV are on ART
95% of people on ART are virally supressed
Describe how the HIV virus replicates.
- HIV virus binds to a CD4 cell/ onto CCR5 or CXCR4 chemokine co-receptor
- When the HIV binds to the CCR5 or CXCR4 cell there is a conformational change which allows the HIV to fuse with the host cell, releasing the nucleocapsid of the Virus into the CD4 cell
- RNA of the virus is reverse transcribed into DNA by Reverse Transcriptase in the cytoplasm of the cell
NB: Replication is not able to occur until the T cell is activated in response to the HIV antigens
- The virus is then uncoated and the DNA of the virus is able to travel across the nucleus and integrate into the hosts DNA using integrase
- The virus is then able to mature and bud onto the cell membrane of the host cell. Protease breaks down the poyproteins within the virus and allows it to mature.
SO BASICALLY:
HIV –> binds on CXCR4/CCR5 –> opens up cell for HIV to invade –> Reverse transcriptase –> integrase –> protease
Which MHC class do CD4 cells belong to?
CD8?
CD4 = MHC2
CD8 = MHC1
What do CD4 cells do?
1- Help CD8 T cells (anti-viral responses)
2- Help B cells create an antibody response
3- Immune regulation
4- Macrophage activation
On which cells is CD4 espressed?
T cells (CXCR4 and CCR5)
Macrophages (CCR5)
Dendritic Cells (CCR5)
Which part of the body contains the most CD4 cells?
The gut lumen
Which binding sites on the CD4 cell does the HIV virus bind to via gp41/gp120?
CXCR4
CCR5
What is the incubation period of HIV?
variable
anywhere from 1-10 years
How does HIV seroconversion present?
Fever
Rash (variable appearance)
Pharyngitis
Lymphadenopathy
What two genetic mutations can confer some protection against HIV?
HLA-B57 allele
CCR5-delta-32 mutation
According to the WHO, what is Stage 1 disease of HIV?
Asymptomatic
May have lymphadenopathy
According to the WHO, what is Stage 2 disease of HIV?
Mild weight loss <10%
Fungal nail infections
Angular cheilitis
recurrent resp. infections
Herpes Zoster
According to the WHO, what is Stage 3 disease of HIV?
Severe weight loss >10%
Chronic diarrhoea
Chronic fever
Oral hairy leukoplakia
Oral candidiasis
pulmonary TB
According to the WHO what is stage 4 disease of HIV?
Presentation with OIs
What is the mechanism of action of Neucleoside Reverse Transcriptase Inhibitors? (NRTIs)
Competitively inhibit
reverse transciptase;
Incorporation into DNA
causes chain termination
What is the mechanism of Non-Nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors?
Bind to and inactivate
reverse transcriptase
What is the mechanism of action of Integrase inhibitors?
Block the action of integrase, a viral enzyme that inserts the viral genome into the DNA of the host
cell
What is the mechanism of action of Protease inhibitors?
Interfere with post-
translational processing of HIV-1 precursor proteins
How does the 4th Generation HIV test work?
Tests for HIV Antibody and p24 antigen
What is the window period for the 4th generation HIV test?
14 days