Vitamin A Supplementation and Human Immunodeficiency Virus Type 1 Shedding in Women: Results of a Randomized Clinical Trial

• Published in: The Journal of infectious diseases 2002-04, Vol.185 (8), p.1187-1191
• Main Authors: Baeten, Jared M., McClelland, Scott, Overbaugh, Julie, Richardson, Barbra A., Emery, Sandra, Lavreys, Ludo, Mandaliya, Kishorchandra, Bankson, Daniel D., Ndinya-Achola, Jeckoniah O., Bwayo, Job J., Kreiss, Joan K.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome - immunology; Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome - virology; Adolescent; Adult; Biological and medical sciences; Concise Communications; Dietary Supplements; DNA; Double-Blind Method; Experimentation; Female; Follow-Up Studies; HIV; HIV 1; HIV-1 - drug effects; HIV-1 - physiology; Human immunodeficiency virus 1; Human viral diseases; Humans; Infections; Infectious diseases; Medical sciences; Middle Aged; Placebos; RNA; Vagina - virology; Viral diseases; Viral diseases of the lymphoid tissue and the blood. Aids; Virus Shedding - drug effects; Vitamin A; Vitamin A - administration & dosage; Vitamin A deficiency; Vitamin A Deficiency - immunology; Women
• ISSN: 0022-1899; 1537-6613
• DOI: 10.1086/339823

Observational studies have associated vitamin A deficiency with vaginal shedding of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) type 1-infected cells and mother-to-child HIV-1 transmission. To assess the effect of vitamin A supplementation on vaginal shedding of HIV-1, a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial of 6 weeks of daily oral vitamin A (10,000 IU of retinyl palmitate) was conducted among 400 HIV-1-infected women in Mombasa, Kenya. At follow-up, there was no statistically significant difference in the prevalence of HIV-1 DNA (18% vs. 21%, P = .4) or the quantity of HIV-1 RNA (3.12 vs. 3.00 logo copies/swab, P = 1.0) in vaginal secretions of women receiving vitamin A, compared with women receiving placebo. No significant effect of supplementation on plasma HIV-1 load or CD4 or CD8 cell counts was observed, and no effect was seen among women who were vitamin A deficient at baseline. Vitamin A supplementation is unlikely to decrease the infectivity of women infected with HIV-1.