Gastrointestinal dysfunction is a serious problem in many children infected with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), the etiology of which has not been clearly defined. Quantitative nucleic acid amplification was used to study the correlation between shedding of HIV nucleic acids and gastrointestinal symptoms in HIV-infected infants and children. Many with HIV infection and persistent diarrheal disease shed HIV nucleic acids in their feces, as did an HIV-infected patient without apparent diarrheal disease. HIV nucleic acids were not found in feces of non-HIV-infected individuals. Intestinal infection with HIV appears to be important in the pathophysiology of gastrointestinal dysfunction in infants and children with HIV infection. Furthermore, the fecal shedding of HIV may play a role in HIV transmission in environments prone to high levels of fecal-oral contamination.
Founded in 1904, The Journal of Infectious Diseases is the premier publication in the Western Hemisphere for original research on the pathogenesis, diagnosis, and treatment of infectious diseases, on the microbes that cause them, and on disorders of host immune mechanisms. Articles in JID include research results from microbiology, immunology, epidemiology, and related disciplines. Published for the Infectious Diseases Society of America.
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The Journal of Infectious Diseases
© 1991 Oxford University Press