ISSN:
1600-0714
Source:
Blackwell Publishing Journal Backfiles 1879-2005
Topics:
Medicine
Notes:
Background: The HIV/AIDS epidemic in Cambodia has become a major problem in the last 7–8 years, mainly because in this formerly war-stricken country the socioeconomic situation is only slowly improving. Since only very few studies have been published to date on the oral health status of Cambodian HIV/AIDS patients, it was the purpose of the present investigation to study oral manifestations in Cambodian patients with HIV disease.Methods: One hundred one Cambodian patients with HIV infection or AIDS were examined for the presence of oral manifestations in one medical center in Phomh Penh, Cambodia.Results: Sixty-three men and 38 women with a median age of 32 years were examined (age range 7.5–63.5 years). Of these patients, 42.6% were smokers, 46.5% of men were heavy drinkers and 90.5% of men were promiscuous compared with 5.3% of women. The most frequent AIDS-defining diseases were wasting syndrome (54.5%), Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia (PcP) (19.8%) and tuberculosis (18.8%). Puritic papular eruption, a common cutaneous manifestation in HIV-infected patients, was seen in 17.8% of patients. Candida-associated infections of the oral cavity were most common. Among the patients, 52.5% revealed pseudomembranous candidiasis and 35.6% had bilateral hairy leukoplakia. Only 10% of patients had no oral lesions. Also common were necrotising ulcerative gingivo-periodontal diseases (27.7%).Conclusion: The general health status of 101 Cambodian patients with HIV infection and AIDS was poor, and they demonstrated a large number of oral manifestations. Antiretroviral therapy is presently not available and only a fraction of patients receives antimycotic treatment (25.7%). HIV infection and the AIDS epidemic in Cambodia have become a serious problem and patients urgently need adequate diagnosis and antiretroviral therapies.
Type of Medium:
Electronic Resource
URL:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1034/j.1600-0714.2002.310101.x
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