Febrile pharyngitis as the primary sign of HIV infection in a cluster of cases linked by sexual contact.

Three cases of febrile pharyngitis were recorded retrospectively in a cluster of 5 men and 1 woman linked by sexual contact to a human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) carrier. In all 3 patients, a progression into clinical HIV disease was noted during an observation period of 20-25 months. The febrile pharyngitis developed similarly in each patient after an incubation time of 3-5 weeks. High fever of sudden onset and a sore bright red throat were accompanied by extreme lethargy and, in 2/3 patients, a morbilliform rash. The acute illness lasted 4-7 days and was followed by mild lymphadenopathy. All 3 patients were HIV seropositive 17-19 months later, when they first entered the study. By contrast, those 2 cases who did not fall ill, continued to be seronegative for 19-39 months after the exposure. Seroconversion of HIV could retrospectively be demonstrated in 1 of the 3 patients 2 weeks after the onset of the febrile illness. A simultaneous lack of rise in the EBV and CMV titres suggests HIV as the causative agent for this febrile mononucleosis-like pharyngitis.