Study Examines Relation Between Alcohol and HIV Acceleration
HIV is something that can be kept at bay with the right monitoring and medication. When this condition is mixed with alcohol, however, the result can be life threatening. According to a study featured in a Science Daily release, those with HIV who consume two or more alcoholic drinks a day will experience a progression of the disease that is faster than in individuals who abstain.
An article in AIDS Research and Human Retroviruses shows that two or more drinks a day is associated with declining CD4+ cell counts, which indicate a weakened immune system in individuals with HIV. The result was the same for those who were receiving antiretroviral therapy and those who were not.
The authors of this article conducted a 30-month prospective study in which they concluded that alcohol has a direct effect on CD4 cells and that the accelerated decline in CD4+ cells counts in frequent alcohol users is not due to poorer adherence to ART in this population.
In another article from the UCLA School of Medicine, research determined that children who were infected with HIV while in utero via maternal-fetal transmission, were given antiretroviral therapy and had no detectable HIV in their blood, yet they still produced neutralizing antibodies against HIV. This suggested that low levels of viral replication might still be occurring despite drug therapy.
"It is important that HIV infected individuals make informed decisions relating to alcohol consumption. This article will help to achieve that goal," says Thomas Hope, PhD, Editor-in-Chief of AIDS Research and Human Retroviruses and Professor of Cell and Molecular Biology at the Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL.
