Socio-demographic and immunological profile of HIV patients attending ART clinic in a tertiary care hospital in North India

Background: The epidemiology of HIV should be understood especially with regard to various socio-demographic factors because the most effective approaches for its prevention and control are awareness and life style changes. Aim: This study was undertaken to determine the socio-demographic characteristics and immunological profile of HIV seropositive patients attending the antiretroviral therapy (ART) clinic of Lok Nayak hospital in New Delhi, India.Methods: Two hundred and fifty two, HIV seropositive subjects were enrolled in the study irrespective of their ART status. Subjects were staged as per the World Health Organization (WHO) staging system and the socio-demographic data and clinical signs and symptoms were recorded for all subjects on a predesigned performa. CD4+ T lymphocyte count was determined by the Fluorescent Activated Cell Sorting (FACSCount TM) system.