TY - JOUR T1 - Long-term care of HIV-positive patients in general practice JF - British Journal of General Practice JO - Br J Gen Pract SP - 407 LP - 408 DO - 10.3399/bjgp19X704945 VL - 69 IS - 685 AU - Dornubari Lebari AU - Joseph Rylands Y1 - 2019/08/01 UR - http://bjgp.org/content/69/685/407.abstract N2 - The advent of anti-retroviral therapy (ART) has revolutionised the treatment of HIV to the extent that a young person living with HIV (PLWH) today, who is adherent to medication, can have a ‘near normal life expectancy’.1 Therefore, HIV is becoming a chronic disease with an ethnically and culturally diverse population, increasing in age and prevalence.As age increases, so does the likelihood of multimorbidity. There has also been a very successful move towards increased rates of HIV status disclosure to primary care providers.This article aims to give confidence and guidance to bring about a more holistic approach to the long-term care of the PLWH.The single most important factor in longevity is early diagnosis.2 Therefore, GPs need to be proactive in testing patients; even routinely in areas of high prevalence (over 0.2%). In the UK, this includes Birmingham, Brighton, Liverpool, London, and Manchester. Routine testing in these circumstances has been shown to be cost-effective. The existing UK testing guidelines include a reference table of indicative conditions and presentations.3Chronic HIV infection leads to immune dysfunction as well as immunosuppression. The immunosuppression can be reversed, somewhat, with ART, although it is thought that the immune dysfunction remains despite viral suppression. This causes more rapid onset of chronic health conditions than would be ‘age appropriate’ … ER -