Hepatitis C – Human Immunodeficiency Virus Coinfection and the Risk of Cerebro-Cardiovascular Diseases: Is There Enough Evidence to Draw Conclusion and Establish Guideline?

During the last decade, the link between Human Immunodefi ciency Virus (HIV) infection and cardiovascular disease has received much attention. Recent meta-anaylsis by Islam et al. [1], concluded that HIV infection increases the risk of cardiovascular diseases (CVD). They found the relative risk (RR) of CVD among people living with HIV (PLHIV) was 1.61 (95% CI 1.43-1.81). Despite the introduction of antiretroviral therapy (ART) which increase survival of PLHIV, ART itself increase the risk of CVD (RR 2,00 95% CI 1,70-2,37) [1]. Management of HIV has shifted from treating the disease to managing complication and chronic condition such as atherosclerosis [2].