Inflamatory response in patients with HIV infection/AIDS and sepsis

Abstract

Sepsis is a host response to infection characterized by some clinical and laboratorial signals (fever/hypothermia, tachypnea, tachycardia, altered white blood cell count). The assembly of these signals is named systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS), that is neither specific nor sensitive for an infectious cause, mainly in immunosuppressed patients. Early therapy improves the outcome of sepsis patients, and the identification of a sepsis laboratory marker could provide a faster diagnosis for these patients. This study aimed at evaluating the role of C-reactive protein, procalcitonin, interleukin-6, interleukin-10 and tumor necrosis factor-alpha as diagnostic markers of sepsis in patients with HIV infection/AIDS. (AU)