Aging with HIV: a cross-sectional study of comorbidity prevalence and clinical characteristics across decades of life.
Nurses and nurse practitioners require information on the health problems faced by aging HIV-infected adults. In this descriptive, cross-sectional study, we reviewed the electronic medical records of 1,478 adult patients seen in an HIV clinic between May 2006 and August 2007 to examine patterns of comorbidities, and immunological and clinical characteristics across each decade of life. With increasing age, patients were found to have lower HIV viral loads, more prescribed medications, and a higher prevalence of comorbid conditions, including coronary artery disease, hypertension, hypercholesterolemia, hypogonadism, erectile dysfunction, diabetes, peripheral neuropathy, hepatitis C, esophageal gastric reflux disease, and renal disease. Fortunately, with increasing age, patients were also more likely to have public or private health insurance and tended to be more compliant to medical appointments. With growing interest in aging with HIV, this study highlights the vastly different comorbidity profiles across decades of life, calling into question what constitutes "older" with HIV.
Vance
David E
DE
The University of Alabama School of Nursing, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, Alabama, USA.
Mugavero
Michael
M
Willig
James
J
Raper
James L
JL
Saag
Michael S
MS
D017088:AIDS-Related Opportunistic Infections / Q000453:epidemiology*; D000328:Adult; D000375:Aging / Q000473:pathology*; D019380:Anti-HIV Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000150:complications / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000473:pathology*; D006801:Humans; D015995:Prevalence; D019562:Viral Load
D019380:Anti-HIV Agents