Abstract
Evidence suggests that the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), an agent that causes irrrnunologic, neurodevelopmental, and craniofacial abnormalities crosses the placenta and infects the fetus during intrauterine life. The effects of infection on these various systems were examined in a pair of dizygotic twins discordant for evidence of HIV infection. The children, a boy and a girl, were the products of a 34 week gestation, born to an IV heroin using woman. At 2 years of age, the girl was found, after an extended illness, to be seropositive for HIV, with radiographic evidence of pulmonary lymphoid hyperplasia. Serologic studies on the boy failed to shew evidence of HIV infection. Evaluation at 3 years revealed that both twins were developmentally delayed, but that the seronegative twin had significantly better receptive language, gross and fine motor functioning than did his seropositive sibling. Both children scored in the moderately stigmatized category on the fetal AIDS syndrome rating scale. Neurologic exam was normal in the seronegative twin but revealed generalized hypotonia in his seropositive sibling. Investigation of twins born to HIV infected mothers offers a unique opportunity to examine the virus's natural course in children while controlling for other pernicious environmental factors. Inconsistencies betweer various measures emphasize the importance of application of a muitidisciplinary approach to the diagnosis and follow-up of children with AIDS and the AIDS related complex.
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Diamond, G., Marion, R., Belman, A. et al. TWINS DISCORDANT FOR INFECTION WITH HIV: A MULTI-DISCIPLINARY STUDY. Pediatr Res 21 (Suppl 4), 211 (1987). https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-198704010-00271
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1203/00006450-198704010-00271