Prevalence of obesity and cardiovascular risk in patients with HIV/AIDS in Porto Alegre, Brazil

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to discover the prevalence of overweight, obesity and cardiovascular risk in our HIV/AIDS outpatients according to sex, antiretroviral therapy and other variables. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: Patients underwent an anthropometric assessment. Body mass index and waist circumference were used to classify their nutritional status and their cardiovascular risk. RESULTS: The majority of the 345 patients (58.8%) were males. Obesity was detected in 8.3% of them; 34.2% were overweight, and 5.2% malnourished. Near half of them (51.3%) had some cardiovascular risk, with increased risk in 24.6% of them, and substantially increased risk in 26.7% of them. CONCLUSIONS: Overweight and obesity were highly prevalent. Women were more frequently obese (OR = 3.53; IC 95%, 1.47 < OR < 8.69), and their cardiovascular risk was often higher (OR = 6.97; IC 95%, 4.16 < OR < 11.76). The prevalence of obesity and cardiovascular risk did not change according to antiretroviral therapy or other variables.