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Inflammation & Immune Activation

Leakage of Gut Bacteria May Continue in People with Low-level HIV Despite Antiretroviral Therapy

Microbial translocation, or leakage of bacteria from the gut, was detected in patients who continued to show low-level HIV replication despite being on highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART), researchers found in a study reported in the December 2009 Journal of Clinical Virology. Released bacteria and the substances they produce can cause systematic immune activation and inflammation, contributing to problems throughout the body.

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HIV Positive People with Elevated C-reactive Protein Have Higher Cardiovascular Risk, but It May Not Be a Good Predictor of Heart Disease

A widely used biomarker of inflammation, C-reactive protein (CRP), is associated with cardiovascular risk in people with HIV, according to a large study reported in the July 2009 Journal of Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndromes. HIV positive people with elevated CRP had more than 4 times the risk of acute myocardial infarction (MI) than HIV negative people with normal CRP. But two other recent general population studies suggest CRP may not be a causal factor or a good predictor of heart disease.

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HIV9: Biomarkers of Inflammation and Coagulation in Children and Adolescents with HIV

In a study presented this week at the 9th International Congress on Drug Therapy in HIV Infection (HIV9) in Glasgow, Scotland, investigators sought to determine whether inflammatory and coagulation biomarkers are altered in HIV positive children and adolescents.

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