Prevalence of Pancytopenia among HIV Patients Attended to HIV Center in Sana'a City

الملخص

Background: Pancytopenia, a decrease in all three major blood cell types (white blood cells, platelets, and red blood cells), is a common blood disorder among individuals living with HIV. It is caused by multiple factors, including direct effects of the virus, opportunistic infections, nutritional deficiencies, and antiretroviral therapy. The prevalence and severity of pancytopenia varies among different populations, but there are limited data regarding its incidence among HIV patients in Yemen. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of pancytopenia and its associated factors among HIV-infected individuals attending the HIV Center for treatment at Al-Jumhuri Teaching Hospital Authority in Sana’a, Yemen.

Materials and Methods: The time frame for this cross-sectional research was July 2024–January 2025.  There were 238 HIV-positive individuals in all, both male and female.  Structured questionnaires were used to gather demographic information, and the Sysmex XN-550 hematological analyzer was used to examine blood samples.  SPSS version 26 was used for the statistical analysis, and P < 0.05 was chosen as the significance threshold.

Results: The avarage age of patients was 35.4 ± 11.6 years, with males comprising 71.8% of the study population. Anemia was the most prevalent hematological abnormality, affecting 52.1% of patients, while leukopenia and thrombocytopenia were observed in 35.3% and 10.5% of cases, respectively. Pancytopenia was the least common, occurring in 4.2% of patients. Anemia was more frequent in males (55%) than females (44.8%), but the difference was not statistically significant (P = 0.157). However, leukopenia was significantly more prevalent in females (49.3%) than in males (29.8%) (P = 0.005). Thrombocytopenia was observed in 12.3% of males and 6% of females, despite this, there was no statistically significant change (P = 0.153).

Conclusion: In Yemen, pancytopenia, especially anemia, is quite common among people with HIV, with a significant association between female sex and leukopenia. These findings highlight the importance of routine hematological monitoring and early intervention to manage cytopenias in HIV patients. Further studies are needed to explore the underlying mechanisms and the impact of antiretroviral therapy on hematological abnormalities in this population.