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Many study groups have attempted to define the cardiac risks faced by HIV-infected patients, with an emphasis on traditional risk factors and antiretroviral exposures. In this large prospective study, investigators focused on the risk associated with the infection itself.
Using the HIV Outpatient Study (HOPS) database, the researchers identified 2005 HIV-infected patients for whom a baseline cardiac risk profile could be calculated according to the usual Framingham criteria. These individuals represented only about half the patients who were otherwise eligible.
During a median 5.5 years of follow-up, 148 patients (7%) experienced a clinical event indicative of atherosclerotic coronary disease (including cardiac events, ischemic stroke, and pe…