Influenza vaccination does not worsen HIV infection.

2003 MAY 21 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Maria G. Essig, MS, ELS, senior medical writer - HIV-positive patients who received an influenza vaccination did not experience increases in the HIV viral load or decreases in CD4 T lymphocytes, according to a report in the Journal of Clinical Virology.

"Influenza vaccination is recommended for HIV-infected patients, although the efficacy is not clear," said Daniel J. Skiest and Timothy Machala at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center. "Prior studies have yielded differing results with regard to the effects of influenza vaccination on HIV viral load and CD4 cell counts. We sought to assess the effect of influenza infection and vaccination on HIV viral load and CD4 cell counts."

Skiest and Machala reviewed data on patients attending an HIV clinic in 1997 and 1998. The patients were divided into two groups, those who did not get vaccinated and developed influenza (Group I) and those who received an influenza vaccination (Group II). A similar group of patients who did not get vaccinated but remained free of influenza acted as controls (Group III).

The HIV viral loads in Group I patients before and after influenza infection were 3.34 vs 3.49 log copies/ml, respectively (p=0.36).

"Viral load was unchanged in 22 of 37 patients, increased in ten patients and decreased in five patients," reported the researchers.

No significant difference in viral load before and after influenza vaccination was seen in the Group II patients (3.52 vs 3.66 log copies/mL, respectively; p=0.12). Of the 47 patients vaccinated, 34 experienced no change in viral load, 10 had increases in viral load, and in 3 viral load ...