SEN virus has an adverse effect on the survival of HIV-positive patients.

Background: Patients infected with HIV are often coinfected with other viruses.

Objective: To investigate the effect of SEN virus (SENV) strains D and H on mortality in HIV-positive patients.

Methods: A total of 217 HIV-positive patients were analysed retrospectively after first presentation and blood sampling (January 1997 to July 1997) and the effect of coinfection with SENV-D and SENV-H on survival was examined. Analysis periods were the time from blood sampling to the end of follow-up, and the time from diagnosis of HIV infection to the end of study follow-up. SENV-H DNA was measured quantitatively. Prevalences of SENV-D and SENV-H were compared with those in 112 healthy blood donors.

Results: SENV prevalence was significantly higher in HIV-positive patients than in controls (56/217 and 12/112, respectively; P < 0.001). SENV positivity had no influence on survival, but a significant negative influence of SENV-H on survival was observed when SENV-H DNA was > 530 copies/ml, which was the mean SENV-H DNA level found in HIV-negative controls. This adverse effect was found for both studied time periods in a Kaplan-Meier analyses. A multivariate Cox regression analysis, including CD4 cell count, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention stage, age, sex, HIV RNA, highly active antiretroviral therapy and hepatitis C virus status, revealed that a high SENV DNA level was an independent risk factor or indicator for adverse disease outcome.

Conclusion: SENV infection is common in HIV-positive patients. High SENV-H DNA levels were predictive for poor survival in HIV-positive patients.