Protease inhibitor treatment effect on aortic stiffness in normotensive patients with human immunodeficiency virus infection.

OBJECTIVE

Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection and protease inhibitor (PI)-based antiretroviral treatment might increase large artery (aortic) stiffness compared with healthy untreated controls. To clarify the role of PI therapy in the progression of subclinical arteriosclerosis in patients with HIV, we investigated the impact of PI treatment on arterial stiffness.

RESULTS

In our single-centre, cross-sectional study, normotensive male HIV patients free from overt cardiovascular disease received PI treatment (n=60) or no PI treatment (n=42). The PI group had a significantly higher pulse wave velocity (PWV) than the PI-free group (9.0 ± 1.4 vs. 8.1 ± 1.3m/s; P=0.016). There was a significant positive correlation between age and PWV in the PI-free group (R(2) 0.310; P<0.0001) and, to a lesser extent, in the PI group (R(2) 0.181; P<0.0001). PI treatment was associated with a significant increase in the adjusted slope of the curve relating age to PWV as compared with no PI treatment.

CONCLUSIONS

In normotensive HIV patients, PI treatment significantly increases both aortic stiffness and the positive correlation between PWV and age. Aortic stiffness predicts cardiovascular mortality, thus these results provide new insight on the relationship between PI treatment, mechanical arteriosclerotic and cardiovascular risk.