Survival, CD4 T lymphocyte count recovery and immune reconstitution pattern during the first-line combination antiretroviral therapy in patients with HIV-1 infection in Mongolia.

Abstract

Mongolia has a low incidence of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection, with 281 cases reported at the end of 2019 and an estimated incidence rate of 50 cells/μL indicated CD4 T cell count recovery, and a cell count of ≥500 cells/μL in patients with a baseline cell count of 500 cells/μL in 95 of 145 (65.5%) patients with a baseline cell count of <500 cells/μL after 36 months of ART. The baseline CD4 T cell count was found to be a sensitive indicator for immune reconstitution. An advanced pretreatment clinical stage of HIV infection (as classified by the WHO classification), a low CD4 T cell count in the peripheral blood, and a high viral load before the initiation of the first-line ART accurately predicted survival, CD4 T cell count recovery, and immune reconstitution in Mongolian patients with HIV/AIDS.