Complications of HIV disease and antiretroviral therapy

Studies on the efficacy of and drug interactions with the hepatitis C virus (HCV) direct-acting antivirals (DAAs) in HCV/ HIV coinfection were a highlight of the 2012 Conference on Retroviruses and Opportunistic Infections. The addition of an HCV protease inhibitor (PI) to pegylated interferon alfa/ribavirin increased HCV cure rates by 30% to 35% in HCV genotype 1 treatment-naive HIV-coinfected patients, an increase similar to that observed in HIV-uninfected HCV-infected patients. Drug interactions with antiretrovirals can be complex, and DAAs are recommended for use only with antiretroviral drugs for which pharmacokinetic data are available. Further drug interaction and clinical data are needed to ensure the safe coadminstration of DAAs with antiretroviral therapy. The conference placed continued emphasis on pathogenesis, management, and prevention of the long-term complications of HIV disease and its therapies, including cardiovascular disease, lipodystrophy, renal disease, alterations in bone metabolism, and vitamin D deficiency, along with a growing focus on biomarkers to predict development of end-organ disease. HIV has increasingly been recognized as a disease of accelerated aging, manifested by increased progression of vascular disease, cellular markers of aging, and a heightened risk of certain non-AIDS-defining malignancies. This year's conference also highlighted data on diagnosis, prevention, and complications of tuberculosis coinfection as well as the treatment and prevention of coinfections that are common with HIV, including cryptococcal meningitis, influenza, and varicella zoster.