DESIGN OF A PROSPECTIVE-STUDY OF THE PULMONARY COMPLICATIONS OF HUMAN-IMMUNODEFICIENCY-VIRUS INFECTION

Because no studies have systematically described the pulmonary complic ations associated with early stages of infection with the human immuno deficiency virus (HIV), the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute a nd the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases jointly i nitiated a prospective cohort study in 1987 to describe the incidence and course of lung diseases at all stages of HIV infection. This paper describes the ongoing study and highlights some of its unusual featur es. Six clinical centers from different geographic areas in the U.S. b egan enrolling participants in 1988, and the resulting cohort comprise s 1353 members. HIV seropositive participants were randomized to ''int ensive'' (pulmonary disease screening and follow-up at 3-month interva ls) or ''routine'' (6-month follow-up intervals with annual screening) follow-up to assess the impact of these strategies on patient outcome s. New information from this complex study will lead to a broader unde rstanding of the pulmonary diseases associated with HIV infection and will have relevance to clinical as well as epidemiologic aspects of HI V disease.