title: Vitamin D deficiency is associated with severity of liver disease in HIV/HCV coinfected patients.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To study the association of plasma 25-hydroxy vitamin D (25(OH)D) levels in HIV/HCV coinfected patients with severity of liver disease and virological response to hepatitis C virus (HCV) therapy with pegylated-interferon-alpha plus ribavirin (pegIFNα/RBV).
  
  
  METHODS
  A cross-sectional study in 174 HIV/HCV coinfected patients that underwent a liver biopsy previously to start HCV therapy and a retrospective study of 125 of them. Plasma 25(OH)D levels were quantified by enzyme immunoassay. Liver biopsies were evaluated by METAVIR score. A sustained virological response (SVR) was defined as an undetectable serum HCV viral load (<10 IU/mL) up through 24 weeks after the end of HCV treatment.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The median of plasma 25(OH)D level was 48 nmol/L (p25th: 32.5; p75th: 56.1) and 27 (15.5%) had 25(OH)D deficiency (<25 nmol/L). The percentage of 25(OH)D deficiency was higher in patients with significant fibrosis (F ≥ 2) (92.6% vs. 57.1%; p = 0.010) and moderate necroinflammatory activity grade (A ≥ 2) (85.2% vs. 60%; p = 0.043). However, adjusted logistic regression analyses showed that 25(OH)D deficiency was only associated with severity of liver disease [F ≥ 2 (OR = 8.47 (95% of confidence interval (CI) = 1.88; 38.3); p = 0.005) and A ≥ 2 (OR = 3.25 (95%CI = 1.06; 10.1); p = 0.040)]. Moreover, any significant relationship was found between 25(OH)D deficiency and SVR after HCV therapy.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Plasma 25(OH)D deficiency was associated with liver disease severity in HIV/HCV coinfected patients, but it was not associated with HCV treatment failure.
authors.affiliation: Unit of Viral Infection and Immunity, National Centre of Microbiology, Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Majadahonda, Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: María
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Guzmán-Fulgencio
authors.affiliation: Unit of Viral Infection and Immunity, National Centre of Microbiology, Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Majadahonda, Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Mónica
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: García-Álvarez
authors.affiliation: Infectious Diseases - HIV Unit, Hospital General Universitario "Gregorio Marañón", Madrid, Spain; Health Research Institute "Gregorio Marañón", Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Juan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Berenguer
authors.affiliation: Unit of Viral Infection and Immunity, National Centre of Microbiology, Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Majadahonda, Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: M Ángeles
authors.initials: MÁ
authors.lastname: Jiménez-Sousa
authors.affiliation: Infectious Diseases - HIV Unit, Hospital General Universitario "Gregorio Marañón", Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Jaime
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Cosín
authors.affiliation: Unit of Viral Infection and Immunity, National Centre of Microbiology, Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Majadahonda, Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Daniel
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Pineda-Tenor
authors.affiliation: Infectious Diseases - HIV Unit, Hospital General Universitario "Gregorio Marañón", Madrid, Spain; Health Research Institute "Gregorio Marañón", Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Ana
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Carrero
authors.affiliation: Infectious Diseases - HIV Unit, Hospital General Universitario "Gregorio Marañón", Madrid, Spain; Health Research Institute "Gregorio Marañón", Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Teresa
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Aldámiz
authors.affiliation: Pathology Department, Hospital General Universitario "Gregorio Marañón", Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Emilio
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Alvarez
authors.affiliation: Infectious Diseases - HIV Unit, Hospital General Universitario "Gregorio Marañón", Madrid, Spain.
authors.forename: Juan Carlos
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: López
authors.affiliation: Unit of Viral Infection and Immunity, National Centre of Microbiology, Instituto de Salud Carlos III, Majadahonda, Madrid, Spain. Electronic address: sresino@isciii.es.
authors.forename: Salvador
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Resino
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000998:Antiviral Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000821:virology; D019698:Hepatitis C, Chronic / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000821:virology; D006801:Humans; D008103:Liver Cirrhosis / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000821:virology; D016015:Logistic Models; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D014807:Vitamin D / Q000031:analogs & derivatives / Q000097:blood; D014808:Vitamin D Deficiency / Q000378:metabolism / Q000821:virology*
chemical_list: D000998:Antiviral Agents; D014807:Vitamin D; C104450:25-hydroxyvitamin D
keywords: AIDS; Antiviral therapy; Chronic hepatitis C; Hepatic biopsy; Liver fibrosis; Vitamin D