Abstract
The advent of highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) and the appropriate use
of prophylactic strategies to prevent opportunistic infections have drastically decreased
human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection-related mortality. However, there is
growing evidence that metabolic abnormalities associated with HIV infection and with
its treatment may lead to an increased risk of cardiovascular (CV) events. Several
studies showed an increased risk of symptomatic and subclinical CV events in these
patients. On the other hand, the association with venous thromboembolic events is
less compelling. This increased risk is possibly explained by the coexistence in this
population of different risk factors determined by the HIV infection per se, by the higher prevalence of traditional CV risk factors such as obesity, smoking,
hypertension, hyperlipidemia, and glucose intolerance, as compared with the general
population, and by the effects of HAART. Thus, systematic identification and aggressive
treatment of traditional risk factors seem to be necessary to prevent the development
of cardiovascular disease in this population.
Keywords
human immunodeficiency virus - acquired immunodeficiency syndrome - venous thrombosis
- arterial thrombosis
