[Experiences in surgery of proctologic diseases in patients with HIV infection]

Abstract

Individuals who are seropositive for the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) often suffer from disorders affecting the anorectum, but unfortunately the best kind of treatment frequently seems questionable. In a retrospective investigation we reviewed 29 HIV-positive patients with anorectal lesions who had experienced a proctologic operation. Our impression correlates with other findings according to which HIV-positive patients in advanced stages have a poorer post-operative outcome in terms of morbidity and survival than patients in an early CDC disease stage. This implies that the indication for a proctologic operation in an immunocompromised state has to be considered carefully.