Researchers Investigate Factors Linked to Development of Secondary Diabetes

摘要

San Diego-With the widespread use of antiretroviral therapy, the life expectancy of many patients with HIV has increased substantially in recent years. As opportunistic infections have become less commonly associated with patient mortality, concerns are increasingly shifting to the impact of such chronic health conditions as diabetes mellitus and cardiovascular and liver diseases in this patient population.In fact, the prevalence of diabetes and insulin resistance has grown among patients with HIV, and these conditions are "becoming increasingly recognized as a health problem for our patients," said Colleen M. Hadigan, MD, MPH, assistant professor of pediatrics at Harvard Medical School, Boston, Mass. At a symposium on secondary diabetes at the 65th Scientific Sessions of the American Diabetes Association here in June, she described the direct and indirect effects of antiretrovirals as significant contributors to insulin resistance in the presence of HIV infection.HIV was only one of several conditionsexamined for its associated risk of secondary diabetes. Other researchers addressed diabetes prevalence among patients with affective disorders, such as depression and schizophrenia, and liver disorders, including hepatitis C virus (HCV). As with HIV, a common theme is the effect of treatments for these conditions on diabetes risk, in addition to any influence of the conditions themselves.