The Revival of an “Oldâ€? Marker: CD4/CD8 Ratio

The effectiveness of modern antiretroviral therapies transformed HIV infection into a chronic disease characterized by a persistent condition of inflammation and immune activation. For this reason, even though AIDS-related mortality has been reduced with an increased life expectancy, patients living with HIV infection are more likely to develop non-AIDS events despite the chievement of complete suppression of HIV replication. Hence, the scientific community feels the need to find new biomarkers, which would besuitable in clinical practice for identifying patients who require close monitoring because of an increased risk of developing comorbidities. A renewed interest has emerged about the usefulness of the CD4/CD8 ratio as a marker of immune activation and immune senescence. Recently, many studies have underlined that the CD4/CD8 ratio might represent a good predictor of AIDS and non-AIDS events. Herein, the potential role of the CD4/CD8 ratio for monitoring of HIV patients in different clinical settings is reviewed.