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Retinal Vessel Functional Responses in South Africans Living With and Without HIV: The EndoAfrica-NWU Study
Catharina Elizabeth Myburgh-Jacobsz1, Shani Botha-Le Roux1,2, Konstantin Kotliar3
1Hypertension in Africa Research Team (HART), Faculty of Health Sciences, North-West University, Potchefstroom, South Africa.
Objectives:
The effects of HIV and antiretroviral therapy (ART) on microvascular function are poorly explored. We compared retinal vessel functional responses to flicker light-induced provocation (FLIP) in people living with HIV (PLWH) and people living without HIV (PLWoutH).
Methods:
We included 115 PLWH and 51 PLWoutH with a median age of 41 years. Treated PLWH received similar first-line fixed-dose combination ART. Clinical characteristics and retinal vessels functional responses to FLIP were compared in (a) PLWH and PLWoutH; and (b) PLWH groups stratified by the median of (i) CD4-count (511 cells/mm3), (ii) viral load (50 copies/mL), and (iii) ART duration (57.6 months).
Results:
PLWH were older, smoked more, and had a lower prevalence of hypertension than PLWoutH (p < 0.05). Almost 64% of PLWH were infected for more than 5 years. Retinal vessel responses to FLIP were similar between PLWH and PLWoutH after taking confounders into account. In addition, PLWH subgroups stratified according to immuno-virological status by CD4-count, viral load, and ART duration showed no differences in retinal vessel responses to FLIP.
Conclusion:
Living with HIV and receiving ART were not associated with altered microvascular function as assessed with dynamic retinal vessel analysis in a South African case-control study.
