In this study there were more HIV- infected individuals, who showed progression based on WHO clinical staging criteria compared to those showing progression based on CD4 count criteria. This is similar to studies in the PRE-HAART era [15] where disease progression was reported earlier when defined by laboratory criteria rather than by the development of an opportunistic infection.
This study found a strong association between daily incomes and disease progression portrayed by a decrease in CD4 counts to below 350 cells/mm3 (p = 0.026 CI 95 %). This progression occurred in spite of the optimal provision of free HIV care and treatment for opportunistic infections and prophylaxis using cotrimoxazole or dapsone. Income as a determinant of disease progression was strengthened by finding of an association between higher daily income available for expenditure and delayed disease progression. The acyclovir arm had been reported as having displayed delayed disease progression in the larger study [12]. Studies in America and Canada [5, 6] have reported a similar association between low incomes and more rapid HIV disease progression. Additional evidence shows, higher rates of disease progression after seroconversion among individuals with low incomes levels prior to infection [9]. The association between income and disease progression can therefore not be explained by a reduction of income due to HIV infection and morbidity. We postulate that micronutrient deficiencies which are common in low-income countries and have been proven to compromise the immune systems of HIV infected individuals [16] may play a role in the rate of disease progression observed [16]. Even with most treatment programmes providing multivitamin supplementation to individuals in care and treatment, People Living with HIV (PLWHIV) still bear a heavy burden of dietary micronutrient supplementation which is affected by the daily income available for expenditure. This contributes to the [16] weakening of the immune system and the depletion of CD4 cells resulting in faster disease progression. Micronutrient deficiency in the diet may explain the strong association found in this study between income available for daily expenditure and disease progression. Even with HAART provision, low income levels continue to be associated with poor health outcomes. In Kenya the inability to pay for transport to a HAART provision centre results in poor uptake of HAART [17]. Similarly, a study in British Columbia also reported the inability to pay for transport to a treatment centre as a cause of poor treatment outcomes among individuals with low-income [18]. The cost of transport to a treatment centre may therefore be another reason for the association between HIV disease progression and daily income available for expenditure.
Studies in Tanzania, Uganda and France [5, 19, 20] have found higher rates of disease progression in individuals above 40 years. This study did not find an association (p = 0.68; p < 0.05) between age, and disease progression. The finding of age as a non-determinant of disease progression in this study was most likely due to only 9 % of the participants’ being above 40 years. This study also found no association (p = 0.06; p < 0.05) between sex and disease progression measured using WHO criteria or a reduction in CD4 counts. This finding was corroborated by findings of various studies [6, 7] including a meta-analysis of 23 cohorts from Europe, Australia, and Canada which reported no association between sex and HIV disease progression [7]. The lack of association between level of education and disease progression in this study corresponds to findings in other similar studies of HAART naive individuals [5, 8]. Associations have been found in individuals already on HAART [21] with increased level of education. This delayed progression is attributed to the empowered attitude towards treatment and care resulting from higher levels of education. This did not apply to this study which focused on the period before initiation of HAART.
This study is unusual as it integrated widely accepted definitions of poverty [14] during analysis allowing comparison of results among other low and middle income countries within a global context. The study was conducted in a cohort of HIV positive individuals in serodiscordant unions who were all participating in a controlled trial. This may have introduced some level of selection bias though it is important to note that progression of disease is not expected to be different from other HIV positive individuals. The retrospective study design limited the socioeconomic indicators available to those captured during data collection for HSV2/HIV1 study clinical trial as this study was retrospective [12].
The data presented here however indicates that poverty, defined as the level of daily income available for expenditure, influences pre-HAART HIV disease progression and deserves consideration as a contextual factor in HIV disease progression. Additionally, impoverished populations may benefit from prioritization during implementation of WHO guidelines.