For Immediate Release
New Study Shows HIV-Infected Women Not Using Statins as Recommended
Contact: Kathryn Ryan
914-740-2250
kryan@liebertpub.com
New Rochelle, NY, December 6, 2017—A new study has shown that HIV-infected women do not use statins as recommended by the most recent guidelines. Control of blood lipid levels to prevent heart disease is especially important in HIV-positive women, and they may also benefit from the potential anti-inflammatory effects of statins, as described in an article published in AIDS Patient Care and STDs, a peer-reviewed journal from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers. The article is available free on the AIDS Patient Care and STDs website until January 6, 2018.
In the article entitled “Underutilization of Statins When Indicated in HIV-Seropositive and Seronegative Women,” Jonathan Todd, PhD, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill and a national team of coauthors evaluated the use of statins by both HIV-infected and HIV-uninfected women in whom their use is indicated. Statin use 5 years after indicated was low for both groups of women, with a rate of 38% for HIV-infected women. New guidelines for statin use released in 2013 increased the percentage of HIV-infected women for whom statin use is recommended from 16% to 45%.
“Despite the fact that HIV-infected individuals in the U.S. may have greater contact with healthcare providers than uninfected individuals of the same age, that is not reflected in consideration of their cardiac health,” says Editor-in-Chief Jeffrey Laurence, MD, Professor of Medicine, Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, NY. “This is clearly an important message as a major impediment to reaching a normal lifespan for HIV-positive individuals may be acceleration of disorders associated with aging, particularly cardiovascular disease.”
Research reported in this publication was supported by the National Institutes of Health under Award Numbers U01-AI-103401, U01-AI-103408, U01-AI-035004, U01-AI-031834, U01-AI-034993, U01-AI-034994, U01-AI-103397, U01-AI-103390, U01-AI-034989, U01-AI-042590, U01-HD-032632, UL1-TR000004, UL1-TR000454, R01AI100654, and P30AI050410.. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.
About the Journal
AIDS Patient Care and STDs is the leading peer-reviewed journal dedicated to diagnostics and therapeutics for providing optimal care for HIV/AIDS patients. Published monthly online with open access options and in print and online, the Journal spans the full spectrum of adult and pediatric HIV disease, diagnosis, treatment, prevention, and education, enabling clinicians to keep pace with the latest developments in this evolving field. Complete tables of content and a sample issue may be viewed on the AIDS Patient Care and STDs website.
About the Publisher
Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers is a privately held, fully integrated media company known for establishing authoritative peer-reviewed journals in many promising areas of science and biomedical research, including AIDS Research and Human Retroviruses, LGBT Health, Transgender Health, Viral Immunology, and Journal of Palliative Medicine. Its biotechnology trade magazine, GEN (Genetic Engineering & Biotechnology News), was the first in its field and is today the industry’s most widely read publication worldwide. A complete list of the firm’s 80 journals and books is available on the Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers website.
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