title: Body habitus alterations in HIV-infected women treated with combined antiretroviral therapy.
abstract: Fat distribution alterations are among the most frequent and unexpected side effects of combined antiretroviral therapy. They may occur in patients receiving protease inhibitor-containing regimens and those treated with combinations of only nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors. The broad spectrum of body fat alterations, which are variably associated with metabolic abnormalities, raises the question as to whether they represent different components of the same syndrome or are manifestations of different pathogenetic mechanisms. Recent clinical evidence is consistent with a higher risk of developing body fat alterations in females. We here report three different aspects of body habitus changes in women treated with various antiretroviral regimens and describe their short-term follow-up. We also discuss the possible pathogenetic implications and the role of different drug classes according to present knowledge.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Infectious Disease and Tropical Medicine, L Sacco Hospital, University of Milan, Italy.
authors.forename: A L
authors.initials: AL
authors.lastname: Ridolfo
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Gervasoni
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Bini
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Galli
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D019380:Anti-HIV Agents / Q000009:adverse effects*; D023241:Antiretroviral Therapy, Highly Active / Q000009:adverse effects; D001786:Blood Glucose / Q000032:analysis / Q000187:drug effects; D001823:Body Composition / Q000187:drug effects*; D018791:CD4 Lymphocyte Count; D002784:Cholesterol / Q000097:blood; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000276:immunology / Q000821:virology; D006801:Humans; D008060:Lipodystrophy / Q000139:chemically induced* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D008875:Middle Aged; D009765:Obesity / Q000139:chemically induced* / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D018894:Reverse Transcriptase Inhibitors / Q000009:adverse effects*; D014280:Triglycerides / Q000097:blood; D019562:Viral Load
chemical_list: D019380:Anti-HIV Agents; D001786:Blood Glucose; D018894:Reverse Transcriptase Inhibitors; D014280:Triglycerides; D002784:Cholesterol