Improved growth and anemia in HIV-infected African children taking cotrimoxazole prophylaxis.
Prendergast A., Walker AS., Mulenga V., Chintu C., Gibb DM.
The impact of cotrimoxazole (CTX) on growth and/or anemia was investigated in 541 human immunodeficiency virus-infected, antiretroviral therapy-naive Zambian children enrolled in the Children with HIV Antibiotic Prophylaxis trial. Compared with children randomized to receive placebo, children randomized to receive CTX had slower decreases in weight-for-age (P=.04) and height-for-age (P=.01), and greater increase in hemoglobin level (P=.01). These findings argue for expanded early CTX use.