Bacterial pneumonia

August 2005     View PDF     En español
Reprinted from www.aidsmap.com, Great Britain

Bacteria are tiny single-celled micro-organisms which are found everywhere in nature. They can cause infection even when a person’s immune system is unaffected by HIV.

In an uninfected person, various parts of the immune system play different roles in protecting against bacteria. People with HIV may have abnormalities in their immune system which make them more vulnerable to bacterial infections: immunoglobulins (antibodies) are not secreted properly; monocytes do not work properly; the bone marrow may be damaged by drugs such as AZT (zidovudine, Retrovir), ganciclovir (Cymevene) or anti-cancer chemo-therapy; and HIV itself may prevent the release of neutrophils.

Bacteria can cause a range of different problems in different parts of the body; the commonest among people with advanced HIV infection are sinusitis, pneumonia, diarrhoea, bronchitis and skin and soft tissue infections. Co-trimoxazole (Septrin) as Pneumocystis pneumonia (PCP) prophylaxis offers a good level of protection against bacterial infections.

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Bacterial infections of the lungs