Analysis of the incidence of HIV infection in the Altai region in 2022

Introduction: In the Altai Territory, there are the same trends in the change in the HIV epidemic as in Russia as a whole. Changing the "portrait" of a typical patient with HIV infection, as well as increasing coverage of patients with specific therapy, dictates the need to study the characteristics of HIV infection in the Altai Territory. Purpose: analysis of the epidemiology of HIV infection in the Altai Territory in 2022, taking into account the genetic characteristics of circulating variants in the territory. Materials and methods: An analysis of the main epidemiological indicators for HIV infection in 2022 was carried out. A collection of plasma samples from patients without therapy experience (n = 187) collected in 2022 in the Altai Territory was collected and analyzed. The genetic variant of HIV-1 was determined, an analysis of primary drug resistance was carried out in the Altai Territory in 2022. Results: The article presents an analysis of epidemiological data indicating the continuation of changes in the structure of HIV-infected people in the Altai Territory, as in the Russian Federation as a whole (an increase in the proportion of the female population, the proportion of people over 30 years old, the dominance of the sexual transmission of infection). A high frequency of infection with the recombinant form of CRF63_02A6 was detected. At the same time, the Altai Territory is not distinguished by a high genetic diversity of HIV-1. A high frequency of drug resistance (including a high level) to first-generation NNRTIs has been established. Conclusion: The HIV epidemic in the Altai Territory reflects the main trends in HIV infection in the Russian Federation, including the situation with primary drug resistance. Meanwhile, the characteristics of the genetic diversity of HIV-1 in this territory require further study. Keywords: HIV infection, sequencing, genetic diversity, drug resistance.