TY - JOUR T1 - Pulmonary Infections in HIV-Infected Patients: An Update in the 21st Century JF - European Respiratory Journal JO - Eur Respir J DO - 10.1183/09031936.00200210 SP - erj02002-2010 AU - N. Benito AU - A. Moreno AU - J.M. Miro AU - A. Torres Y1 - 2011/01/01 UR - http://erj.ersjournals.com/content/early/2011/09/01/09031936.00200210.1.abstract N2 - From the first descriptions of HIV/AIDS, the lung has been the site most frequently affected by the disease. Most patients develop a pulmonary complication during the history of HIV infection, mainly of infectious etiology.Since earlier studies, important changes in the epidemiology of HIV-related pulmonary infections have occurred. Overall, prescription of Pneumocystis jirovecii prophylaxis and the introduction of highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART), are the main causes. Currently the most frequent diagnosis in developed countries is bacterial pneumonia, especially pneumococcal pneumonia; the second most frequent cause is Pneumocystis pneumonia and the third cause is tuberculosis. However, in Africa, tuberculosis could be the most common pulmonary complication of HIV. Pulmonary infections remain one of the most important causes of morbidity and mortality in these patients, and remain the first cause of hospital admission in the HAART era. Achieving an etiologic diagnosis of pulmonary infection in these patients is important due to its prognostic consequences. ER -