Relative risks were calculated using Poisson regression with robust standard errors to account for the binary outcome. Age-adjusted estimates were obtained by including a quadratic relationship with age at diagnosis [13]. Data were analysed using stata 11.0 (StataCorp, College Station, TX) [14]. During the period 1 January 2005 to 31 December 2010 there were 978 adults diagnosed with HIV infection through antibody testing in New Zealand; of these,

198 were tested as part of an immigration medical, and 25 had been previously diagnosed overseas, leaving 755 for this study. An initial CD4 cell count was provided for 80.3% of these individuals (606 of 755) (Table 1). The proportion of those

with a CD4 cell count available who had a diagnosis of AIDS within 3 months of their HIV diagnosis was 14.5% (88 of 606), compared with 8.7% (13 of 149) for those for whom a CD4 cell LY294002 chemical structure count was not available Dabrafenib (P = 0.06). Of those with an available initial CD4 cell count, 50.0% (303 of 606) were ‘late presenters’, and 32.0% (194 of 606) had ‘advanced HIV disease’ (Table 2). Overall, the median CD4 count was 346 cells/μL. MSM were least likely to be ‘late presenters’ and to present with ‘advanced HIV disease’. The median CD4 count was 404 cells/μL for MSM, and 271 cells/μL for those heterosexually infected. Among MSM there was no significant change in the proportion presenting late over the years 2005–2010 (P for trend = 0.11 for ‘late presentation’ and 0.21 for ‘advanced HIV disease’). Table 3 shows that presenting late was significantly more common among older MSM, with the age difference more marked among those with ‘advanced HIV disease’. MSM of Māori ethnicity were more Tolmetin likely to present with ‘advanced HIV disease’ compared with those of European ethnicity. The relative risk (RR) for Pacific MSM was higher than for Māori MSM; however,

the numbers were smaller and the finding did not reach statistical significance. Adjustment for age increased the estimated RR of presenting with ‘advanced HIV disease’ to 2.1 [95% confidence interval (CI) 1.4–3.2] for Māori MSM, and to 2.5 (95% CI 1.2–5.0) for Pacific MSM, which was then significantly raised compared with European MSM. There were no differences in ‘late presentation’ among MSM by ethnicity; adjustment for age increased the RRs only slightly and they remained nonsignificant. There were no differences in presenting late by country of infection. Not surprisingly, MSM tested because of ‘risk’ or being ‘screened’ were less likely to present late, with the difference being more marked for ‘advanced HIV disease’. Compared with those with a negative test within the previous 2 years, indicating new infection since then, those having a negative HIV test more than 2 years earlier, or never, were considerably more likely to present late.