Background: The aim was to determine the prevalence of retinal lesions in patients infected by the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) in China.
Methods: The study included 105 consecutive patients with an HIV infection that underwent general and ophthalmologic examinations. In none of the patients was any systemic opportunistic infection found. The CD4+ T lymphocyte count determined in 89 patients revealed that 77 patients (87%) had a CD4+ lymphocyte count of >200 x 10(6)/l.
Results: Retinal microvascular abnormalities were found in 12 subjects (11%) and local retinal nerve fiber layer defects in 13 patients (12%). Patients with fundus abnormalities compared to those with a normal fundus had a significantly (p = 0.013) lower CD4+ T cell count (166 +/- 67) x 10(6)/l vs. 482 +/- 33 x 10(6)/l) and did not vary significantly in visual acuity.
Conclusions: In these HIV-positive Chinese patients attending a hospital for infectious diseases, retinal microvasculopathy and retinal nerve fiber layer defects were the most common fundus lesions, which were found in about 10% of the patients and which were inversely associated with the CD4+ T cell count, without marked effect on visual acuity.