Assessment of metabolic syndrome in HIV-infected individuals

BACKGROUND: Metabolic syndrome (MS) is a cluster of risk factors for cardiovascular disease and Type 2 diabetes mellitus. OBJECTIVES: The aim is to assess the prevalence of MS in HIV patients receiving highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) and to compare it with treatment naïve HIV patients. METHODS: Cross-sectional study carried out in a teaching hospital in North India. A total of 116 HIV positive patients who were on HAART and those who were treatment naïve were included in the study. Adult Treatment Panel III (ATP III) and International Diabetes Foundation (IDF) definitions were used to define MS. Clinical and laboratory investigations were performed as per requirement and then analyzed using SPSS software. RESULTS: A high prevalence of MS was observed in HIV positive patients (ATP III – 19.8% and IDF – 25.9%). The prevalence of MS was higher in the anti-retroviral therapy (ART) group (ATP III – 33.3% and IDF – 36.4%) than ART-naïve group (ATP III – 2% and IDF – 12%). CONCLUSIONS: A sincere effort should always be made to detect MS in patients on HAART, especially in Indian subcontinent where there is a genetic predisposition to cardiovascular risk.