Faculty of Science

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The Faculty of Science is respected within South Africa, Africa and the world arena as a knowledge-partner of note that builds on the scientific, technological and intellectual capacity of Africa and plays an active role in the development of South African society. The faculty is placed in the top 300 within the category Natural Sciences of the QS World University Ranking list.

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Browsing Faculty of Science by Author "Abaid, Faten E. Bashir"

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    Cardio-metabolic effects of anti-retroviral treatment in the Cape Winelands region of South Africa
    (Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2016-03) Abaid, Faten E. Bashir; Essop, M. Faadiel; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Science. Dept. of Physiological Sciences.
    ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Background: Although highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) has significantly improved the survival of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected patients there are increased concerns regarding the onset of co-morbidities (e.g. cardio-metabolic complications) and mortalities. Although South Africa is burdened with the highest number of HIV-infected individuals globally, there is a relative paucity of data regarding potential links between HIV infection, HAART and cardio-metabolic risk/onset. Methods: This cross-sectional study therefore investigated the prevalence of cardio-metabolic risk factors in HIV-infected individuals within the Cape Winelands region of South Africa. Here we collected anthropometric, biochemical and lifestyle-related data for HIV-positive HAART naive (n =25) and HIV-positive individuals on HAART (n = 50) patients (20–55 years old) at the Worcester Community Day Centre (CDC) (Worcester, Western Cape, South Africa) during 2014 and 2015. Subjects on HAART were further divided into two sub-groupings, i.e. first line (n = 25) and second line treatments (n = 25). Results: Our data reveal the relatively high prevalence of traditional, cardio-metabolic lifestyle risk factors in HIV-infected individuals. There was a relatively high prevalence of smoking, i.e. 88% for the HIV-positive HAART naive group and 27% for the HIV-positive group on HAART (P = 0.001), while more than half of the HIV-positive individuals exhibited a positive history of familial cardiovascular diseases (CVD). There were no significant differences for fasting blood glucose (FBG) and insulin levels between HIV-positive HAART naive and HIV-positive on HAART. Lipid metabolite analyses (Total cholesterol [TC], low-density lipoprotein [LDL], high density lipoprotein [HDL] and triglyceride [TG]) also did not reveal significant changes when comparing HIV-positive on HAART versus HIV-positive HAART naive groups. However, additional analyses (using established cut-off values for HDL, LDL) showed a significant difference in the proportion of individuals categorized with ‘’low HDL’’ status, i.e. 68% for the HIV-positive HAART naive compared to 40% for the HIV-positive on HAART group (P =0.022). HAART also enhanced anthropometric measures of obesity, with significant differences for weight gain, triceps skin fold (TSF), biceps skin fold (BSF), waist circumference (WC) and mid-upper arm circumference (MUAC) between the naive and HAART groups. This applied similarly for first and second line treatments. Conclusion: The study established the prevalence of several traditional lifestyle CVD risk factors in both HIV-positive naive and HIV-positive on HAART in the Cape Winelands region of South Africa. HAART enhanced several measure of weight gain and lipid profile, suggesting a restoration to health and well-being. However, there was a relatively high prevalence of obesity in the HIV-positive on HAART group (especially females) thus placing them at a greater risk for the onset of future cardio-metabolic complications. We are unable to distinguish whether this risk is due to HAART or lifestyle-related risk factors, and this question requires further investigation. The findings of this study indicate that clinicians should be attentive of lifestyle-related CVD risk factors in HIV-positive persons and make an effort to counsel patients to adopt improved lifestyle choices.