The characteristics of HIV-positive patients with mild/asymptomatic and moderate/severe course of COVID-19 disease – a report from Central and Eastern Europe

BackgroundThere is currently no evidence suggesting that COVID-19 takes a different course in HIV-positive patients on antiretroviral treatment compared to the general population. However, little is known about the relation between specific HIV-related factors and the severity of the COVID-19 disease.MethodsWe performed a retrospective analysis of cases collected through an on-line survey distributed by the Euroguidelines in Central and Eastern Europe Network Group. In statistical analyses characteristics of HIV-positive patients asymptomatic/moderate and moderate/severe course were compared.ResultsIn total 34 HIV-positive patients diagnosed with COVID-19 were reported by 12 countries (Estonia, Czech Republic, Lithuania, Albania, Belarus, Romania, Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Poland, Russia, Hungary, Bulgaria). Asymptomatic courses of COVID-19 were reported in four (12%) cases, 11 (32%) patients presented with mild disease not requiring hospitalization, moderate disease with respiratory and/or systemic symptoms was observed in 14 (41%) cases, and severe disease with respiratory failure was found in five (15%) patients. The only HIV-related characteristics differentiating a moderate/severe course of the disease from asymptomatic/mild disease course was the use of or PI or NNRTI as part of the cART regimen (40.0% vs. 5.3%, p=0.0129 for PI and 31.6 % vs. 0.0%, p= 0.0239 for NNRTI).ConclusionsIn our analyses HIV viral suppression and immunological status were not playing a role in the course of COVID-19 disease. On the contrary the cART regimen could contribute to severity of SARS-CoV-2 infection. Large and prospective studies are necessary to further investigate this relations.

Risk of Incident Diabetes Mellitus, Weight Gain, and Their Relationships With Integrase Inhibitor–Based Initial Antiretroviral Therapy Among Persons With Human Immunodeficiency Virus in the United States and Canada

Background Integrase strand transfer inhibitor (INSTI)–based combination antiretroviral therapy (cART) is associated with greater weight gain among persons with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), though metabolic consequences, such as diabetes mellitus (DM), are unclear. We examined the impact of initial cART regimen and weight on incident DM in a large North American HIV cohort (NA-ACCORD). Methods cART-naive adults (≥18 years) initiating INSTI-, protease inhibitor (PI)–, or nonnucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitor (NNRTI)–based regimens from January 2007 through December 2017 who had weight measured 12 (±6) months after treatment initiation contributed time until clinical DM, virologic failure, cART regimen switch, administrative close, death, or loss to follow-up. Multivariable Cox regression yielded adjusted hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for incident DM by cART class. Mediation analyses, with 12-month weight as mediator, similarly adjusted for all covariates. Results Among 22 884 eligible individuals, 47% started NNRTI-, 30% PI-, and 23% INSTI-based cART with median follow-up of 3.0, 2.3, and 1.6 years, respectively. Overall, 722 (3%) developed DM. Persons starting INSTIs vs NNRTIs had incident DM risk (HR, 1.17 [95% CI, .92–1.48]), similar to PI vs NNRTI initiators (HR, 1.27 [95% CI, 1.07–1.51]). This effect was most pronounced for raltegravir (HR, 1.42 [95% CI, 1.06–1.91]) vs NNRTI initiators. The INSTI–DM association was attenuated (HR, 1.03 [95% CI, .71–1.49] vs NNRTIs) when accounting for 12-month weight. Conclusions Initiating first cART regimens with INSTIs or PIs vs NNRTIs may confer greater risk of DM, likely mediated through weight gain.