[Factors linked to rapid progression to AIDS in Cuban subjects].

Introduction: in the last few years, the number of HIV Cuban patients expressing rapid clinical and immunologic deterioration has increased.

Objective: to find out the possible factors associated to rapid progression to AIDS.

Methods: a case-control study was carried out with the objective of determining possible factors associated with rapid progression to AIDS. Twenty six patients with rapid progression to AIDS, who were seen at "Pedro Kouri" Institute of Tropical Medicine from September 2007 to August 2008 together with two 20- patient control groups (A and B) were involved in the study. Social, demographic, clinical and laboratory variables were analyzed. By means of multivariate logistic analysis, the association between the exposure variables and the rapid progression to AIDS was determined.

Results: the variables associated with rapid progression to AIDS using the punctual estimate of the Odds ratio (OR > or = 2) were: female (OR: 17.0), non-use of condom (OR: 3.24), percentage of TCD4+ lymphocytes at the moment of HIV diagnosis < or = 25% (OR: 8.0) and the absolute count < or = 400 cel/mm3 (OR: 3.27), oral candidiasis (OR: 66.20), and an HIV viral load > 10 000 UI/mL at the moment of the diagnosis (OR: 4.62). The age older than 30 years at HIV diagnosis, the toxic habits, the symptomatic syndrome of acute retrovirosis and the rest of the co-infections were not associated with rapid progression to AIDS.

Conclusions: besides those well-known viral and immunologic factors, there are other clinical and epidemiological factors associated with rapid progression to AIDS such as being female, non-use of condon, oral candiasis, T cell CD4+ count and viral load. All of them must be taken into account at the moment of initial patient assessment.