What is it about?
Within a group of patients living with HIV who had received antiretroviral therapy for more than 10 years at an urban HIV clinic in Kampala, we found that one in four (24.4%) had hypertension. When we followed up with the patients for almost 8 years, 15.83% developed hypertension. The rates of hypertension were higher than has been reported in the same cohort eight years ago (https://www.thelancet.com/journals/langlo/article/PIIS2214-109X(15)70045-8/fulltext) In our study, hypertension was more common in males and in participants who were older, had diabetes mellitus, were obese, had high cholesterol, and those with prior exposure to stavudine, or nevirapine. Participants who were older, with obesity or renal insufficiency, were likely to develop hypertension during follow-up.
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Why is it important?
Our study suggests that hypertension is common in people living with HIV and will probably increase with the ageing population. In addition, we also found that the prevalence and incidence of hypertension have increased over time in the same cohort. Therefore the current HIV systems must integrate screening and treatment for cardiovascular diseases associated with chronic ART exposure and/or ageing.
Perspectives
This study is a call for funding for cardiovascular research in African cohorts. As part of my PhD, I described an association between integrase inhibitors and hypertension using data from a European cohort (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9545382/) and dyslipidemia (https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33443370/). My plan is to investigate the metabolic toxicity of contemporary ART in the African cohort. I am calling for partners in this area for possible collaboration.
Dathan Byonanebye
Makerere University
Read the Original
This page is a summary of: Prevalence and incidence of hypertension in a heavily treatment-experienced cohort of people living with HIV in Uganda, PLoS ONE, February 2023, PLOS,
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0282001.
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