SUMMARY OBJECTIVE The recent development of direct-acting antiviral agents (DAAs) has dramatically changed the treatment of chronic hepatitis C, and interferon-based regimes have become a poor treatment choice in clinical practice. Today DAAs offer shorter, well-tolerated, highly effective curative therapies. This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of DAAs in patients with end-stage renal disease and HCV genotype 1 infection in real clinical practice. METHODS Thirty-six patients who attended our clinic, were diagnosed with chronic hepatitis C (CHC), undergoing hemodialysis, and fulfilled the criteria of age >18 years, genotype 1 infection, with a detectable HCV RNA level were considered for the study. Patients with GT1a infection received OBV/PTV/r plus DSV plus RBV for 12 weeks; GT1b infected patients received this regimen without RBV for 12 weeks. RESULTS The study was conducted on 33 patients. The mean age was 52.30 ±13.77 years, and 70 % of them were male. By the fourth week of treatment, HCV RNA levels decreased below 15 IU/ml in all patients. Sustained virologic response (SVR) 12 rate was 100%. Nine patients had side effects during treatment. Of the patients with side effects, 89.9% were in group 1a and 11.1% in group 1b. CONCLUSION In this study, treatment with OBV/PTV/r and DSV with or without RBV resulted in high rates of sustained virologic response in HCV GT1-infected patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD). SVR was achieved in all patients with few side effects.
1 August 2025 in Journal of the International Association of Providers of AIDS Care (JIAPAC)
Background: Late diagnosis of HIV remains a critical barrier to effective treatment and improved long-term outcomes. Individuals presenting with low CD4+ T cell counts at diagnosis are at greater risk for opportunistic infections, hospitalization, and mortality. This study aimed to compare clinical, immunological, and virological outcomes among early and late presenters, and to identify factors associated with virologic failure. Methods: We conducted a retrospective cohort study of 200 patients newly diagnosed with HIV between 2012 and 2019. Participants were categorized into three diagnostic groups based on baseline CD4+ T cell counts: early diagnosis (>350 cells/mm 3 ), late diagnosis 1 (200-350 cells/mm 3 ), and late diagnosis 2 (<200 cells/mm 3 ). Baseline demographics, laboratory markers, clinical outcomes, and treatment responses were compared. Logistic regression was used to evaluate predictors of virologic failure at 6 months. Results: Late presenters accounted for 71% of the cohort and were more likely to be older, female, unmarried, and have lower education levels. They exhibited significantly lower CD4+ counts, CD4/CD8 ratios, and higher HIV RNA levels at diagnosis ( P < .001). Opportunistic infections, hospitalization, and mortality were significantly more common in the late diagnosis 2 group ( P < .001). Although virologic suppression was achieved in most patients, immune recovery was significantly impaired in those diagnosed late. Antiretroviral therapy (ART) initiation after 2015 was independently associated with lower risk of virologic failure (OR: 0.39; P = .039). Conclusion: Late HIV diagnosis is associated with increased clinical morbidity and impaired immune reconstitution, even in virologically suppressed individuals. Early detection, prompt ART initiation, and routine CD4/CD8 monitoring are essential to optimize outcomes. Public health interventions targeting social determinants may help reduce delays in diagnosis and improve equity in HIV care.
Candida auris is a multidrug-resistant fungal pathogen associated with high mortality in healthcare settings. Although colonization is recognized as the harbinger of invasive infection, predicting which patients will develop bloodstream infection (BSI) and when this transition will occur remains a clinical challenge. In this study, patients aged ≥18 years with C. auris colonization identified at İzmir City Hospital between January 2023 and June 2025 were retrospectively analyzed. Colonization was confirmed by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (MALDI-TOF MS). Of 71 colonized patients (median age 65 years; 69.0% male; 93.0% intensive care unit (ICU)-admitted), 31 (43.7%) developed bloodstream infection (BSI). In-hospital mortality was 62.0%, rising to 74.2% in the BSI group, though this difference did not reach statistical significance (p = 0.105). Competing risks analysis using the Aalen–Johansen method showed a cumulative BSI incidence of 38.2% (95% confidence interval (CI): 28–50%) by day 10 and 43.0% (95% CI: 32–54%) by day 30 following colonization detection. On multivariate logistic regression, diabetes mellitus was the sole variable independently associated with a lower risk of BSI development (adjusted odds ratio (OR): 0.19; 95% CI: 0.06–0.68; p = 0.010); this finding was directionally consistent but did not reach statistical significance in the multivariable Fine–Gray competing risks model (subdistribution hazard ratio (SHR): 0.334; 95% CI: 0.108–1.040; p = 0.057). All 40 tested isolates had high fluconazole minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) values; micafungin susceptibility was 92.5%, while anidulafungin resistance was observed in 32.5% of isolates. Our findings demonstrate that nearly half of colonized patients developed BSI, with no identifiable safe window for intervention, underscoring the necessity of sustained infection control measures and susceptibility-guided antifungal therapy.