A new review finds that progress has been made in understanding and treating fat redistribution and other metabolic problems in people with HIV, but more research is necessary to understand the biology involved and the best treatment options. The review suggests that combining multiple treatment strategies may offer more successful options for combating these antiretroviral side effects.

Although highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) slows HIV disease progression and has helped prevent HIV-related deaths, its use can lead to a number of undesirable side effects, such as weight gain, high cholesterol…

Results of a new study indicate that metabolic abnormalities, such as high cholesterol and pre-diabetes, are common in HIV-positive teens and young adults and may be related to long-term use of certain antiretroviral drugs.

The authors suggested that doctors carefully consider long-term side effects when deciding on antiretroviral therapy regimens for HIV-positive children.

Previous studies have shown that antiretroviral therapy in adults is associated with long-term side effects, such as insulin resistance, diabetes, heart disease, abnormal distribution of body fat, and chronic kidney disease (see related AIDS Beacon news).…

Bariatric surgery, such as gastric bypass or gastric banding, may provide an effective treatment option for obesity and its related diseases in people with HIV, according to a small study published in AIDS Patient Care and STDs.

The researchers also found a high rate of complications after the surgery, but the study was too small to determine if people with HIV are more prone to complications than people without HIV.

Bariatric surgery is a procedure that achieves weight loss by reducing the size of the stomach, and thus the amount…

Researchers from the San Francisco VA Medical Center and the University of California, San Francisco have found that HIV increases the risk of atherosclerosis, a condition in which artery walls thicken as a result of a buildup of fatty materials. HIV competes equally with other common high risk factors of atherosclerosis, such as diabetes and smoking. These findings support a potential change in treatment for long-lived HIV patients regarding atherosclerosis.

Diabetes is a disease in which the body’s cells cannot properly intake dietary sugar resulting in a buildup of sugar…