Impact of HIV Infection and HAART on Serum Lipids in Men

Abstract

Before the availability of highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART), studies in persons infected with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) type 1 demonstrated lipid abnormalities. Men with HIV infection were reported to have hypocholesterolemia with and without hypertriglyceridemia.^1-4 An association between plasma triglyceride levels and circulating interferon α levels has been observed in persons with AIDS; however, the mechanism for hypocholesterolemia in HIV and other infections is not known.^1,2 A pattern of hyperlipidemia (ie, elevated levels of total cholesterol [TC], low-density lipoprotein cholesterol [LDL-C], and triglycerides, and a reduced level of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol [HDL-C]) has been observed in patients treated with protease inhibitors (PIs).^5-13