HIV Virologic Failure among Patients with Persistent Low-Level Viremia in Nairobi, Kenya: It Is Time to Review the >1000 Virologic Failure Threshold

Table 3

Comparison of patients who resulted in nondetectable viral loads (<20 copies/ml) and virologic failure (≥1000 copies/ml) after PLLV.

Variables	Nondetectable	VF	value
Age group
1 to 9	33	4	0.006
10 to 19	30	8
20 to 24	10	4
25 to 30	11	5
31 to 40	73	6
41 to 50	164	17
51 and above	130	11
Gender
Male	206	22	0.424
Female	245	33
Education
None	1	1	0.371
Preschool	13	2
Primary	91	13
Secondary	97	11
Postsecondary	60	5
Not documented	189	23
Marital status
Single	93	18	0.001
Married	245	18
Separated/divorced	22	4
Widowed	26	6
Not documented	65	9
Years positive
0 to 5	33	4	0.96
6 to 10	114	12
11 and above	137	14
Not documented	222	55
Age at HIV diagnosis
1 to 9	55	9	0.002
10 to 19	10	6
20 to 29	38	3
30 to 39	104	6
40 to 49	55	4
50 and above	18	2
Not documented	171	25
Baseline CD4
<500	74	11	0.525
≥500	11	1
Not documented	366	43
Baseline WHO stage
Stage 1	158	20	0.424
Stage 2	65	5
Stage 3	96	17
Stage 4	31	5
Not documented	101	8
Baseline viral load
Nondetectable	110	8	0.0001
20 to 199	213	10
200 to 999	44	13
1000 and above	84	24
TB history
Yes	62	12	0.11
No	389	43
OI history
Yes	372	46	0.831
No	79	9
PCP
Yes	3	0	0.544
No	448	55
Cryptococcal disease
Yes	3	1	0.362
No	448	54
Oral candidiasis
Yes	18	5	0.086
No	433	50
Kaposi’s sarcoma
Yes	1	0	0.727
No	450	55
Other cancers
Yes	6	1	0.77
No	445	54
Hypertension
Yes	69	6	0.387
No	382	49
Diabetes
Yes	16	0	0.156
No	435	55
Renal disease
Yes	16	3	0.482
No	435	52
IPT status
Completed	251	33	0.106
Deferred	76	17
Start	15	1
Continuing	20	0
Declined	9	0
Defaulted	2	1
Not documented	78	3
First VL at PLLV
500 to 999	31	12	0.0001
200 to 499	63	15
20 to 199	357	28
VL status at PLLV
Viral blips	132	28	0.001
to 999	19	13
All	300	14
Start regimen
2NRTI+1PI/r	89	11	0.9333
2NRTI+1NNRTI	350	43
2NRTI+1INSTI	12	1
Switched regimen at PLLV
Yes	184	17	0.157
No	267	38

VF: virologic failure; OI: opportunistic infection; VL: viral load; WHO: World Health Organization; IPT: Isoniazid Preventive Therapy; PCP: pneumocystis pneumonia.