3. Electronic Theses and Dissertations (ETDs) - All submissions
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Item Neurodevelopmental delay among HIV-infected preschool children receiving antiretroviral therapy and healthy preschool children in Soweto, South Africa(2012-05) Lowick, SarahNeurodevelopmental delay has been documented in up to 97.5% ofHIV-infected childfen in Soweto who were not yet on ART. With growing numbers of children in South Africa being successfully treated with antiretroviral treatment (ART), the effects of ART on neurocognitive functioning in children require investigation. The objective of this study was to determine the extent of neurodevelopmental delay in stable HIV -infected preschool children (aged) 5-6 years) receiving ART and compare it to an apparently healthy . (unconfirmed HIV-status) group of preschool children. Thirty HIV-infected preschool children (virologically and immunologically stable on ART for> 1 year) were conveniently sampled from 350 eligible children on ART at the Harriet Shezi Children's Clinic in Soweto, Johannesburg. The comparison group comprised thirty well-nourished preschool children attending the Lilian Ngoyi Primary Health Care Clinic in Soweto for routine immunisations. Each child was assessed using the Griffiths Mental Development Scales-Extended Revised Version (GMDS-ER), at a single point in time. The overall developmental z-scores on GMDS-ER were <-2 (indicating severe delay) in 27 (90%) children in the HIV-infected group compared to 23 (76%) in the comparison group (p=0.166). Mental handicap (overall GQ<70) was evident in 46.7% of children in the HIV -infected group compared to 10% in the comparison group (p= 0.002). There was a 7.88-fold increased likelihood of severe delay in the HIV infected group. The HIV -infected group and comparison group had significantly different (p=0.001) mean overall GQ scores of70 (95% CI: 66.0-74.0) and 78 (95% CI: 75.6- 80.5), respectively, with lower mean scores in the HIV -infected group in all individual domains. Early initiation of ART in HIV-infected infants may improve cognitive functioning among this group, however, intervention strategies which optimize early cognitive development for all children in the area, need to be urgently considered.