AIDS screening in West Denmark. Results of examination of 500 persons in an AIDS screening clinic in Arhus
Tauris, P.; Halkier-Sørensen, L.; Black, F.T.; Kristensen, T.; Philipsen, H.P.; Wallevik, K.; From, E.
Ugeskrift for Laeger 150(13): 788-791
1988
ISSN/ISBN: 0041-5782 PMID: 3363703 Document Number: 324207
During a period of two years, 500 persons were examined as outpatients in the AIDS Screening Clinic, Marselisborg Hospital in Arhus. 94% of the persons investigated had sought the clinic on their own initiative. 87.6% of all those examined were homosexual or bisexual men and 5.8% of the remainder belonged to known AIDS risk groups. A total of 51 (10.2%) were seropositive and 78.4% of these were male homosexuals or bisexuals while the remainder (21.6%) had known connections with AIDS risk groups. Only 2.2% employed the possibility for anonymous investigation. HIV-related symtomatology was found in four patients while the remainder were symptomfree at the time of investigation. Among the seropositive persons a statistically significantly lower CD4/CD8-ratio was found resulting from the reduced number of (CD4-lymphocytes) and hypergammaglobulinaemia involving the isotypes IgG and IgA. The number of immune-globulin-secreting cells determined by means of indirect plaque-forming cell analysis showed a markedly lower response in mitogen activated short-term cultures of the peripheral lymphocytes from seropositive individuals as compared with seronegative persons. The number of plaque-forming cells in unstimulated cultures was considerably raised in seropositive persons as a reuslt of in vivo activation of the B-lymphocytes. Compared with the results of the first investigation, supplementary investigation of 37 seropositive individuals six months later revealed significantly lower values both for the CD4/CD8-ratio, the total number of CD4-lymphocytes as mitogen response and increased concentration of S-IgA and an increased number of B-lymphocytes.