Serum protein electrophoresis as an added value for disease control among HIV patients in a hospital setting in Cameroon

Abstract

In the resource-limited countries, CD4 count and viral load (VL) determination are not always systematic, due to the low follow-up coverage and/or limited access to optimal hospital facilities. The present study aimed at evaluating the clinical role of Serum Protein Electrophoresis (SPE) in HIV health care and disease control. An analytic study was conducted in a Cameroon reference's hospital, in HIV patients on antiretroviral treatment. Blood sample was collected to perform CD4 count, viral load, total proteins, and SPE through clinical capillary electrophoresis. SPE data were correlated to other results. ANOVA, Mann-Whitney test and Pearson's correlation were performed, at the threshold P<0.05. A total of 72 patients: 51 (70.8%) women and 21 (29.1%) men were included, with a mean age of 41.22±8.48 years. The electrophoretic profile showed that the majority of patients have hyperproteinemia (70.9%) and hyper-γ-globulinemia (89%). All the enrolled patients had low albumin/globulin ratio. A negative and significant correlation was observed between CD4 count and total proteins (r=-0.5, P<0.0001), and γglobulin (r=-0.6, P<0.0001). The correlation was positive and significant with the albumin/globulin ratio (r=0.6, P<0.0001). Patients with VL≥250 Cp/mL, had a high total proteins and different fractions of globulins, compared to those with VL<250 Cp/mL. The perturbation of CD4 count and VL were associated with SPE data variations, which better describes patient's clinical status. SPE could be combined to the existing analyses to improve AIDS health care.