A glimmer of hope? Evaluation of time for non-genitourinary medicine physicians to diagnose HIV infection in patients presenting with HIV-related illness. (August 2013)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Clarke, E; Drew, O; Sundaram, S; Baker, A; Whale, J; Rowen, D; Patel, R
• Is Part Of: International journal of STD & AIDS. Volume 24:Number 8(2013)
• Page Start: 639
• Page End: 641
• Publication Date: 2013-08
• Subjects: HIV -- AIDS -- diagnosis -- late presenters -- time to diagnosis -- United Kingdom; Sexually transmitted diseases -- Periodicals; AIDS (Disease) -- Periodicals; 616.951
• DOI: 10.1177/0956462413477555
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0956-4624

Abstract

Summary: A study conducted in 2002–2003 at three UK south coast hospitals measuring the length of time for non-genitourinary medicine physicians to diagnose HIV when patients presented with an HIV-related illness, found a median time to diagnosis of four days with 70% of diagnoses being made within seven days. This retrospective cohort study of all patients newly diagnosed with HIV between 1 January 2010 and 31 December 2011 was conducted at the same three hospitals. Thirty-seven patients were newly diagnosed with HIV in non-genitourinary (GU) medicine inpatient and outpatient settings (24 men, 13 women), with a mean age of 43 years. The median time to diagnosis was one day (interquartile range of 0–4 days), with 81% of diagnoses made within seven days of first presentation. Late diagnosis of HIV remains a significant challenge, but delayed diagnosis in a patient admitted with an HIV-related illness is reducing in this setting.