Profile of People Living with Human Immunodeficiency Virus Initiating Treatment in the Dolutegravir Era in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo

Abstract

Background: For several decades, the introduction of AntiRetrovirals (ARVs) has improved the symptomatology of People Living with HIV (PLHIV), a spectacular reduction in morbidity and mortality, an improvement in life expectancy and quality of life of PLHIV. Objective: The objective of this study was to determine the profile of PLHIV initiating AntiRetroViral Treatment (ART) in the era of Dolutegravir in Kinshasa. Methods: Cross-section of a prospective cohort to determine the profile of PLHIV initiating ART in Kinshasa. The inclusions were from October 04, 2021 to February 15, 2022. Confirmation of the diagnosis was carried out by Nested PCR. The inclusion criteria were: being at least 18 years old, confirmed HIV positive, naïve to ART, consenting and having signed an informed consent. The parameters of interest followed for the present study were: age, sex, religion, level of study, marital status, occupation, height, weight, body mass index (BMI), the clinical profile, the opportunistic infections as well as the para-clinical assessment (biochemistry and molecular biology). Results: 67 (56.3%) women and 52 (43.7%) men were included, thus 119 patients, all confirmed positive for HIV by Nested PCR on the gag, pol and env regions. The average age of the patients included is 39.87 ± 12.36 years and the most represented age group is that of 36 to 45 years with 37 patients (31.9%). The average height was 1.66 ± 0.08 meters, with an average weight of 56.41 ± 13.30 kg, giving an average Body Mass Index (BMI) of 21.54 ± 5.17 kg/m2. The majority of patients were married (46.1%), of Protestant religion (70.7%), with secondary education (66.7%), and working in the informal sector (29.4%). 49 patients (41.5%) were in clinical stage 3 and 55 patients (47.0%) had a normal clinical status. Malaria (45.4%) and tuberculosis (29.4%) were the most common Opportunistic Infections. The mean values of the patients’ assessed biochemical parameters were within the ranges. The median VL value was 4.16 log10 RNA copies/ml. Subtype A (20.2%) is dominant. Mutations K65R (2 cases), T69P/N (5 cases), K70R (9 cases) and M184V (8 cases) were listed. Conclusion: In Kinshasa, PLHIV start ART late. The biochemical parameters evaluated are within normal ranges, with high VLs. Subtype A remains predominant and there are mutations conferring resistance to ART.