International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics

People infected with HIV are four times more likely to suffer a sudden cardiac death than the rest of the population.

A new ten-year study from the University of California, San Francisco, is the first to investigate the link between the two conditions.

Scientists analysed the medical records of 2,860 HIV-infected patients between 2000 and 2009 and found that cardiac-related deaths accounted for 15 per cent of overall mortality.

Of this proportion, 86 per cent experienced sudden cardiac death.

"The fact that the vast majority of cardiac deaths were sudden is surprising and implies that we as clinicians need to be aware of this potential health issue among patients with HIV," said lead author Zian Tseng.

He explained that further research needs to be conducted to ascertain the biological causes of this correlation.

Dr Tseng believes the increased effectiveness of antiretroviral drugs in combating HIV-related deaths means that the link between the condition and secondary causes of death, such as cardiovascular disease, will become increasingly important.

Posted by David Smith