Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 2003. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
Mail & Guardian (Johannesburg) - July 9, 2003
Tonsils out: The oropharynx, the middle part of the throat that includes the soft palate, the base of the tongue and the tonsils, could be a source of infectious HIV in individuals with a high viral load and intact tonsils, according to a study published in the latest edition of the Journal of Infectious Diseases.
Infectious HIV is rarely detected in saliva, but the investigators wished to establish the frequency and quantity of HIV shedding in the middle part of the throat.
Between 1999 and 2001, 64 HIV-positive gay men were recruited in Seattle, United States, and in Lima, Peru. Only use of anti-HIV therapy, CD4 cell count and removal of the tonsils were found to be significantly associated with a lower pharyngeal viral load. A man who had had his tonsils removed would have a lower viral load than a man with a similar CD4 cell count even if he was also taking anti-HIV drugs.
The investigators note that use of anti-HIV therapy and the absence of tonsils were the strongest predictors of lower pharyngeal HIV viral load.
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