Comparison of clinical characteristics of amebic liver abscess in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected and non-HIV-infected patients

Background and Purpose: Amebic liver abscess is an emerging parasitic disease in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected patients. Clinical characteristics of this disease have rarely been compared between patients with and without HIV infection. Methods: This retrospective study included 24 patients who had been diagnosed with amebic liver abscess during a 17-year period. The demographics, clinical manifestations, radiographic findings, and outcomes were compared between HIV-infected and non-HIV-infected patients. Results: Among 24 patients with amebic abscess, 8 were HIV-infected and 16 were non-HIV-infected. The mean (± standard deviation [SD]) age of HIV-infected patients was 41.0 ± 11.3 years (range, 27-62 years), which was younger than that of the non-HIV-infected group (58.5 ± 14.6 years; range, 27-77 years; p=0.01). Compared with non-HIV-infected controls, patients with HIV infection had lower white blood cell counts (median, 17.2 × 10⁹/L vs 10.4 × 10⁹/L; p=0.01), neutrophil/ lymphocyte (N/L) ratio (median, 12.1 vs 2.7; p