A patient with advanced HIV disease is at risk for a disseminated infection with Mycobacterium avium-intracellular Complex (MAC). The risk is significantly reduced if the patient is receiving effective antiretroviral therapy.
The risk is increased if the CD4+ cell count is < 100 per µL, especially when <= 50 per µL.
The patient may present with:
(1) fever
(2) weight loss
(3) diarrhea
(4) abdominal pain
(5) anemia
Organ involvement in disseminated MAC infections may include combinations of:
(1) lungs
(2) brain
(3) peritoneum
(4) skin
(5) gastrointestinal tract
(6) lymph nodes
(7) liver
(8) spleen
(9) bone marrow
The diagnosis can be made by blood culture, stool culture or culture of affected organs.
An HIV-infected with disseminated MAC infection is also at risk for having other comorbid systemic infections (cytomegalovirus, deep fungal, etc).
To read more or access our algorithms and calculators, please log in or register.
