Prevalence of lipodystrophy in Thai-HIV infected patients

To determine the prevalence and clinical characteristics of lipodystrophy in HIV-infected Thai patients, a cross-sectional study was performed on 278 HIV-infected patients at Bamrasnaradura Infectious Disease Institute. Laboratory data related to lipid and glucose metabolism were obtained from both patients who self reported fat maldistribution or diagnosed by a physician. The history of antiretroviral treatment and HIV infection were recorded. Prevalence of lipodystrophy found in the present study was 17%. Lipodystrophy was reported mostly on the face, buttock, legs, arms, and abdomen respectively. Two-thirds of these patients had mixed syndromes of fat accumulation and fat wasting and the others had only fat wasting. Ninety-three percent of lipodystrophic patients had at least 1 abnormality in either lipid or glucose metabolism. Eighty-eight percent had dyslipidemia, 21% had impaired glucose tolerance, 30% had insulin resistance and 27% had diabetes mellitus. Lipodystrophic patients have a high rate of lipid and glucose metabolism abnormalities which are the major risk factors for cardiovascular events.