WASHINGTON, Nov. 7 (Xinhua) -- HIV patients are also at a greater risk of both heart and chronic kidney disease, a new study suggested Tuesday.
The findings, published in the U.S. journal PLOS Medicine, were based on an analysis of data from the international Data collection on Adverse events of Anti-HIV Drugs study.
More than 1,400 people in the study being treated for HIV had been diagnosed with chronic kidney disease, and more than 900 had experienced a cardiovascular disease event.
Almost 11 percent of these patients had experienced both chronic kidney disease and cardiovascular disease, with many of these events occurring just one year apart.
"Our research found that people with HIV at high risk of cardiovascular disease had a corresponding 5.63-fold increase in risk of chronic kidney disease -- a finding not consistent with the general community," Professor Mark Boyd of the University of Adelaide in Australia, who led the study, said in a statement.
"This study adds to the international body of research that shows we need to pay close attention to the broader, general healthcare of people living with HIV."
Boyd said the research shows that the risks for cardiovascular and chronic kidney disease in people with HIV should be assessed together.
"We strongly urge both people with HIV and their doctors to be aware of these risks, and to treat them as a combined healthcare issue, not separately," he added.
