Hypertension

In May 2016 a paper by the AGE_hIV Cohort Study group was published in Clinical Infectious Diseases. This paper describes the results of an analysis on high blood pressure among HIV-positive and HIV-negative study participants. The most important findings are summarized below.

HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE IS MORE PREVALENT AMONG HIV-POSITIVE PARTICIPANTS. THIS MIGHT BE THE RESULT OF A LARGER WAIST-TO-HIP RATIO IN THESE PARTICIPANTS.

High blood pressure is an important risk factor for developing cardiovascular disease. During every study visit, a participant’s blood pressure is measured three times and they are asked about their medication use.

For the current analysis we used data from the first study visit. We assessed the prevalence of high blood pressure in HIV-positive and HIV-negative participants, whether the prevalence of high blood pressure is different among HIV-positive and HIV-negative participants, and which factors were associated with developing high blood pressure.

Our results show that the prevalence of high blood pressure is higher among HIV-positive participants of the AGE_hIV Cohort Study (see figure).

Various risk factors play a role in the development of high blood pressure, such as smoking, excessive alcohol consumption, familial predisposition, physical inactivity, and obesity. The higher prevalence of high blood pressure among HIV-positive participants of the AGE_hIV Cohort Study seems to be mostly related to a larger waist-to-hip ratio in HIV-positive participants. This could partially result from the use of specific – more toxic – HIV medication in the past.