{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,10,2]],"date-time":"2026-10-02T05:55:33Z","timestamp":1790920533061,"version":"4.1.0"},"reference-count":31,"publisher":"Frontiers Media SA","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,10,2]],"date-time":"2026-10-02T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1790899200000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["frontiersin.org"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Front. Public Health"],"abstract":"<jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Background<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>Children living with HIV (CLHIV) continue to face high rates of infection and morbidity despite improved ART coverage. This study aimed to (i) compare the prevalence and factors associated with acute morbidities between CLHIV and HIV-exposed uninfected children (HEUC) and (ii) estimate survival probabilities over a two-year follow-up period in a community-based cohort from North Karnataka.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Materials and methods<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>This prospective cohort study was conducted in Belagavi district. Data were collected over eight visits between April 2022 and March 2024. Ethical approval was obtained from the Institutional Ethics Committee of KAHER and SNMC, and permission was granted by the Karnataka State AIDS Prevention Society (KSAPS). Multivariable logistic regression was used to assess the association between HIV status and acute morbidities at baseline and endline, adjusting for sociodemographic factors. Survival probabilities were estimated using the Kaplan\u2013Meier method and log-rank test.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Results<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>A total of 348 children (184 CLHIV and 164 HEUC) with complete baseline and endline data were included in the morbidity analysis, whereas 372 children who were followed for their survival were included in the survival analysis. CLHIV were generally older and more often male. Among CLHIV, 19.0% had lost both parents, compared to 6.1% among HEUC. CLHIV showed higher gastrointestinal and skin morbidity. The adjusted odds of morbidity were ~2-fold at baseline and ~3-fold at the endline. Survival remained high (99% at 1\u202fyear and 98% at 2\u202fyears), with four deaths recorded.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>\n                  <jats:sec>\n                    <jats:title>Conclusion<\/jats:title>\n                    <jats:p>This study demonstrates that CLHIV in North Karnataka experience a substantial burden of morbidity. These health challenges are compounded by social factors, such as orphanhood and limited school attendance. The longitudinal design provides important findings to guide policy decisions and health interventions for vulnerable populations.<\/jats:p>\n                  <\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.3389\/fpubh.2026.1823720","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,10,2]],"date-time":"2026-10-02T05:35:41Z","timestamp":1790919341000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/crossmark-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":0,"title":["Morbidity patterns and survival among children living with HIV and HIV-exposed uninfected children in North Karnataka, India: a community-based prospective cohort study"],"prefix":"10.3389","volume":"14","author":[{"given":"Ashok S.","family":"Dorle","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Community Medicine, S. Nijalingappa Medical College","place":["Bagalkot, Karnataka, India"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Mubashir","family":"Angolkar","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Public Health, KLE Academy of Higher Education and Research (KAHER)","place":["Belagavi, Karnataka, India"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"R.","family":"Manjula","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Community Medicine, S. Nijalingappa Medical College","place":["Bagalkot, Karnataka, India"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Jayaraj","family":"Mhetri","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Community Medicine, S. Nijalingappa Medical College","place":["Bagalkot, Karnataka, India"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Mayank","family":"Singh","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Deparment of Biostatistics and Health Data Science, KLE Academy of Higher Education and Research (KAHER)","place":["Belagavi, Karnataka, India"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Nagaraj B.","family":"Patil","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"School of Public Health, KLE Academy of Higher Education and Research (KAHER)","place":["Belagavi, Karnataka, India"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Sukanya","family":"Sarma","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR)","place":["New Delhi, India"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Prabhu","family":"Bilagi","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Magic Bus Foundation","place":["Mumbai, India"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Rajeev","family":"Sethumadhavan","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"National TB Elimination Program, WHO Country Office for India","place":["New Delhi, India"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Anju","family":"Sinha","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR)","place":["New Delhi, India"]}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1965","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,10,2]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"366","DOI":"10.1186\/s12887-021-02836-4","article-title":"Estimating the burden of pediatric HIV in an \u2018a\u2019category district in India: an epidemiological study","volume":"21","author":"Sinha","year":"2021","journal-title":"BMC 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