Immune system changes after the death of a partner in HIV-positive gay men. NLM AIDSLINE Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 1996. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.

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Immune system changes after the death of a partner in HIV-positive gay men.

Psychosom Med. 1995 Nov-Dec;57(6):547-54. Unique Identifier : AIDSLINE MED/96167744
Kemeny ME; Weiner H; Duran R; Taylor SE; Visscher B; Fahey JL; Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, School of; Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles 90024, USA.

Abstract: The objectives of this study were to determine 1) whether immune changes relevant to HIV progression occurred in HIV-seropositive men after the death of their intimate partner, and 2) whether depressed mood was associated with these immune changes. The bereaved group consisted of 39 gay men whose intimate partners had died of AIDS over the past year; the nonbereaved group consisted of 39 age- and HIV serostatus-matched nonbereaved men. Immunological parameters were assayed from blood samples drawn before and within 1 year after the death of the partner (bereaved group) or over an equivalent time period (nonbereaved group). In the HIV-seropositive bereaved men only, a significant increase in immune activation and a significant decrease in the proliferative response to phytohemagglutinin occurred after the death of the partner. These immunological changes were not explained by the use of recreational drugs, alcohol, cigarettes, or AZT. These data indicate that the death of an intimate partner in HIV-positive men is associated with immune changes that are relevant to HIV progression.
Keywords: Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome/MORTALITY Adolescence Adult Antibodies, Monoclonal *Bereavement Depressive Disorder/ETIOLOGY/*IMMUNOLOGY *Homosexuality, Male Human HIV Seropositivity/*IMMUNOLOGY *Immunity Lymphocyte Subsets/IMMUNOLOGY Male Middle Age Phenotype Phytohemagglutinins/BLOOD Psychoneuroimmunology Support, U.S. Gov't, P.H.S. JOURNAL ARTICLEKWDacquiredimmunodeficiencysyndrome/mortalityadolescenceadultantibodies,monoclonalKWDbereavementdepressivedisorder/etiology/KWDimmunologyKWDhomosexuality,malehumanhivseropositivity/KWDimmunologyKWDimmunitylymphocytesubsets/immunologymalemiddleagephenotypephytohemagglutinins/bloodpsychoneuroimmunologysupport,uKWDsKWDgov't,pKWDhKWDsKWDjournalarticle
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Copyright © 1996 - National Library of Medicine. Reproduced under license with the National Library of Medicine, Bethesda, MD.

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