Pre-treatment drug resistance and HIV-1 genetic diversity in the rural and urban settings of Northwest-Cameroon.

Background: With the scale-up of antiretroviral therapy (ART), pre-treatment drug resistance (PDR) appears ≥10% amongst ART-initiators in many developing countries, including Cameroon. Northwest region-Cameroon having the second epidemiological burden of HIV infection, generating data on PDR in these geographical settings, will enhance evidence-based decision-making.

Objectives: We sought to ascertain levels of PDR and HIV-1 clade dispersal in rural and urban settings, and their potential association with subtype distribution and CD4-staging.