Robert Fieldhouse
High rate of body shape changes in positive kids New research has identified a high rate of body shape changes and raised blood fats in children living with HIV. Having ever taken d4T (Zerit) was associated with fat loss. Around half of the children and adolescents in the 426 person study had lipodystrophy. 2 out of 3 infants who were also living with hepatitis C experienced body shape changes. Body shape abnormalities were also seen in 29 children who were not taking HIV treatment, suggesting a role for HIV itself. In total 14% of children had elevated total cholesterol and 17% had elevated triglycerides, another kind of blood fat. The average age of children in the study was 12, with around 5 years of antiretroviral usage. The researchers argued that “several studies have reported a negative impact of body fat changes on self-esteem and psychological profile in HIV-infected adults…little is known about the impact on children and adolescents, but this is likely to be an issue for adolescents, given that this is a time when self-image is important.”
Elvitegravir looks good out to 2 years
Gilead Sciences recently announced that its still-in-development integrase inhibitor elvitegravir continued to suppress HIV viral load as well as raltegravir (Isentress) in combination with a boosted protease inhibitor at 96 weeks in a Phase 3 study. Elvitegravir is dosed once-daily compared with twice-daily for raltegravir -- but it needs a booster to maintain steady levels in the body. Gilead is developing a tablet combining Elvitegravir and its booster along with tenofovir and FTC.
Pets are good news for women with HIV
Having a pet appears to be beneficial to women living with HIV and trying to manage their condition, according to new research. The study focuses on which social roles assist women in taking their medicine consistently, following doctors’ recommendations and living healthier lifestyles. The most powerful social roles were being a mother/grandmother, being a person of faith, an advocate, an employee and being a pet owner. All roles had positive impacts and empowered women to be more proactive in the management of their health.
Drugs, alcohol and coinfections contribute to early death
Danish researchers have concluded that people living with HIV taking antiretroviral therapy have the same chance of dying as people in the general population. But drugs and alcohol and living with additional coinfections such as hepatitis C increased the likelihood of illness and death. Patients with a sub-optimal response to HIV treatment had a 58% chance of living until 65 years of age. This dropped to 30% for people with co-infections, and to just 3% among people with heavy drug or alcohol use. www.baseline-hiv.co.uk 49