Aim: The goals of this study were: 1) to estimate the prevalence of oral candidiasis (OC) in a sample of Brazilian HIV-infected adult patients, and 2) to investigate the risk factors for HIV-associated OC in this sample. Methods: This case-control study included 112 HIV-infected patients treated between 2002 and 2004 at a clinic for sexually transmitted diseases. Data were collected from medical records and clinical examinations. Diagnosis of OC was performed in accordance with the

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... Classification System and cytological features. Seventeen clinical and laboratorial variables were registered. Univariate analyses were performed on all variables. Multiple logistic regression techniques were used to develop a model and identify the set of variables that may predict risk factors in HIV-infected adult patients with OC. Results: Prevalence of OC was 31.3%. OC was associated with oral hairy leukoplakia (OHL) [p<0.001; odds ratio (OR) = 10.2 (95%CI: 4.0-26.0)], previous use of fluconazole [p<0.001; OR=27.4 (95%CI: 8.1-92.0)] and viral load [p=0.042; OR=2.3 (95%CI: 1.0-5.3)]. Conclusions: These results are important for the development of strategies to eliminate these risk factors and significantly reduce OC in HIV-infected patients.