Comparable carotid intima-media thickness among long-term virologically suppressed individuals with HIV and those without HIV in Thailand

OBJECTIVES: This study compared the carotid intima-media thickness (cIMT) among well suppressed adult participants living with HIV and adults without HIV, aged >45 years. METHODS: A cross-sectional, age and sex-matched study was conducted at two sites in Thailand: King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital (KCMH) and HIV-NAT. All participants had no evidence of coronary artery disease (CAD). Ultrasonography of the carotid artery was measured by one well-trained neurologist who was blinded to the participants’ care. The primary endpoint was the difference in cIMT between participants with HIV and controls without HIV. Prevalence and predictive risk of cIMT≥0.9 mm were determined. RESULTS: Of 90 individuals, 60 were living with HIV. The overall median (IQR) age was 54.1 (52–60) years and 53.3% were male. For the group with HIV, the median duration of ART was 15 years and 33% were on boosted PIs. Compared to controls without HIV, the group with HIV had a higher proportion of hypertriglyceridaemia (48.3% vs 26.7%, P=0.049) but the median overall cIMT of the common carotid arteries (0.665 mm vs 0.649 mm, P=0.277) and serum high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP) (1.59 mg/dL vs 1.46 mg/dL, P=0.325) were not different. Hs-CRP was not correlated with cIMT ≥0.9 mm. However, carotid plaques (n=6) were found only among the group with HIV. From the multivariate analysis, only male sex and hypertension were significantly associated with cIMT ≥0.9 mm. CONCLUSIONS: Well-controlled and long-term treated participants living with HIV had comparable cIMT to Thai adults without HIV. Monitoring for progression of cIMT, carotid plaques and cardiovascular disease in this population is warranted to guide continued management.