Publication Details
Jacob, M.,
&
Holloway, C. J.
(2018).
Cardiac steatosis in HIV-A marker or mediator of disease?.
Frontiers in Endocrinology, 9.
Abstract
Although people living with HIV (PLHIV) are approaching normal life expectancy, a limitation to achieving this goal is managing the higher prevalence of co-morbidities, including cardiovascular disease. Whilst ischaemic heart disease likely contributes to a large proportion of cardiac disease in the modern era of treatment, cardio-metabolic disease, including cardiac steatosis, akin to obesity-related heart disease, is also a possible mechanism of increased cardiac morbidity and mortality. HIV and other metabolic and inflammatory diseases affecting the heart, including obesity, share many cardio-metabolic abnormalities, with increased pericardial and myocardial fat content, in association with chronic systemic inflammatory changes and alterations in cardiac metabolism. Understanding the mechanisms of HIV-associated cardiac steatosis remains an important challenge, as managing the untreated metabolic and inflammatory precipitants may substantially improve cardiac outcomes for PLHIV.
Keywords
HIV, cardiac steatosis, pericardial fat, cardiovascular disease, metabolic dysregulation, systemic inflammation
