Candida colonisation in asymptomatic HIV patients attending a tertiary hospital in Benin City, Nigeria

Background : Candidiasis is the commonest opportunistic fungal infection in patients infected with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). CD4+ lymphocyte counts have been found to be a marker of HIV disease progression. Aim : This study focused on determining the spectrum of Candida isolates in urine, stool, and oral specimens among HIV patients in a tertiary hospital. Methods : A total of 300 subjects comprising of 200 HIV patients and 100 non-HIV subjects were used for this study. Three samples (urine, stool, and oral swab) were collected from each subject. Each specimen was processed using standard microbiological techniques and emergent Candida isolates were identified with CHROMagar™ Candida and sugar fermentation tests. Results : The overall prevalence of Candida colonisation among HIV patients was 52.5%. HAART-naive patients had a significantly higher prevalence (OR = 3.65; 95% CI = 2.03-6.56; p