HIV and SARS‐CoV‐2 co‐infection: A case report from Uganda

Baluku, Joseph Baruch; Mwebaza, Shem; Ingabire, Gloria; Nsereko, Chris; Muwanga, Moses

There are no reports of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS‐CoV‐2) and HIV co‐infection from sub‐Saharan Africa where 70% of people living with HIV are found. We report a case of HIV/SARS‐CoV‐2 co‐infection from Uganda. A 34 year old HIV‐positive female on antiretroviral therapy (tenofovir disoproxil fumarate, lamivudine and efavirenz) for 5 years, tested positive for SARS‐CoV‐2, the causative agent for coronavirus disease 19 (COVID‐19). She was asymptomatic at presentation but subsequently developed headache, chest pain, diarrhoea, anorexia and fatigue on day 3 of isolation without cough, fever or shortness of breath. Her CD4 count was 965 cells/mm(3), the HIV viral load was undetectable (<1,000 cells/mm(3)) and other laboratory work up was normal. She was successfully managed with hydroxychloroquine and broad spectrum antibiotics, and was discharged after 24 days. This case demonstrates an atypical clinical presentation of COVID – 19 in an HIV infected patient without other co‐morbidity. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.