The mean age was 34.8 years (median 33 years). Most patients were 25–36 or 35–49 years old (38.2 and 34.2 %, respectively); 17.95 % were younger than 25 years of age and 10.6 % were 50 years and older. Of 335 patients with a valid CD4 cell count at first presentation, 164 had a CD4 cell count of 350/ll and 11 patients had a stage C disease with CD4 cells [350/ll. Additionally, another 13 patients could be attributed to stage C in spite of missing CD4 cells counts. Thus, 188 (54.02 %) of 348 classifiable patients according to CD4 cell counts and stage of HIV infection were late presenters to care in our department during the years 1986–2010. 118 (33.9 %) were very late presenters in an advanced stage of infection.