Prevalence and clinical characteristics associated with peripheral neuropathy amongst persons on HAART in Busia County, Kenya.
John N Mukoma, Joseph M Matheri, Nassib Tawa
PMID 32935068WHAT IT FOUND
Peripheral neuropathy is highly prevalent in HIV patients on antiretroviral therapy, affecting nearly seven in ten.
Pain and numbness in the feet are the most common symptoms, strongly linked to the underlying illness rather than age or gender, suggesting a need for routine screening in this population.
Key findings
01Symptomatic peripheral neuropathy was found in 68.1% (197 of 289) of adults on HAART.
02The most frequent signs were reduced vibration sense in the big toe, foot pain, and reduced ankle reflexes.
03Peripheral neuropathy symptoms were strongly associated with the presence of illness, but only weakly related to age, gender, or education.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTsWhat it means for OTs
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What it does not show
The study did not assess CD4 count, viral load, or tuberculosis medication data, so it could not determine if neuropathy severity correlates with disease progression or specific treatments. Other common risk factors for neuropathy, such as diabetes and poor nutrition, were not investigated. The cross-sectional design limits the ability to establish causality between illness and neuropathy symptoms. The study was conducted in a resource-limited setting, which may affect the generalisability of findings to other populations.
Declared interests
The authors declared no conflicts of interest. The study was approved by the Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology Ethical Review Committee and the National Commission of Science, Technology and Innovation.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume that demographic factors like age or gender are the primary drivers of neuropathy in this population. The study found that the presence of illness was the strongest correlate, while age and gender showed only weak associations.