A Model for the CD4 Cell Counts in an HIV/AIDS Patient and its Application in Treatment Interventions

Abstract

The number of CD4 white blood cells has been established as an important clinical marker of disease progression to acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) for persons infected with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). The number of CD4 cells per unit volume is expected to decrease with time since infection by the virus. However on introduction of treatment interventions, the process is expected to reverse with the counts increasing to return to the normal level. In this study we deduce that the count per unit volume of blood of an HIV/AIDS patient has a linear relationship with the time since infection during the short period of time immediately treatment usage begins. We show one application of the model in treatment selection strategy.