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APHA Scientific Session and Event Listing

Recorded presentation

Arpi Terzian, Epidemiology, The Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, 615 North Wolfe Street, Room E7133, Baltimore, MD 21205, 781-608-4564, aterzian@jhsph.edu, Susan Holman, SUNY Downstate Medical Center, 450 Clarkson Avenue, Box 1240, Brooklyn, NY 11203, Niyati Anan Nathwani, University of Southern California, 2020 Zonal Ave, Los Angeles, CA 90033, Esther Robison, Montefiore Medical Center, 3311 Bainbridge Avenue, 2nd Floor, Bronx, NY 10467, Kathleen Weber, CORE Center, John H. Stroger Hospital of Cook County, Administration Building, 1900 W. Polk Street, Room 1248, Chicago, IL 60612, Mary Young, Georgetown University Medical Center, 110 Kober-Cogan Building, 3800 Reservoir Road, NW, Washington, DC, DC 20007, and Stephen J. Gange, PhD, Epidemiology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, 615 N. Wolfe Street, Room E7638, Baltimore, MD 21205.

Background: Few reports have used objective measures of physical functioning in HIV-infected women. We investigated the association of HIV-related immunodeficiency and disease on functioning in the era of potent antiretroviral therapy in the Women's Interagency HIV Study, a prospective cohort study initiated in 1994 across 5 US cities. Methods: In 2004, we collected data on 1,203 HIV-infected and 505 HIV-uninfected women who performed tests measuring grip strength and walking speed: a test using a hand dynamometer (repeated 3x) and a 4m timed-walk (repeated 2x). Outcomes were analyzed separately using multivariate linear regression. Results: Among HIV-infected women, women with nadir CD4 count <100 cells/mm3 were weaker (adjusted mean difference 2.8kg, p=.02) but had similar walking speed (p=.27) to women with nadir CD4 count > 500 cells/ mm3, controlling for AIDS and sociodemographic factors. African-Americans, Hispanics, women with depression (CESD > 20), <=$18,000 annual income, or <=11th grade education were slower (p <.05); Hispanics, women with <=$18,000 annual income, or <=6th grade education were weaker (p<.01). Older women were slower (0.05s/m per 10 years, p <.01) and weaker (-1.2kg per 10 years, p <.01). Overall, women without AIDS were similar to HIV-uninfected women; those with AIDS were slower (p=.05) and weaker (p=.02). Conclusions: Our study is one of the first to identify factors in HIV-infected women associated with impaired strength and mobility. As individuals with access to potent therapies survive longer, quantifying the effect of HIV and its treatment on broader measures of health is important.

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of the session, the participant (learner) in this session will be able to

• Recognize the importance of broader measures of health such as physical functioning and quality of life as HIV-infected individuals are living longer in the era of potent antiretroviral therapy and 2)Identify risk factors for impaired strength and mobility among HIV-infected women in the US.

Keywords: Women and HIV/AIDS, Disability

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Any relevant financial relationships? No

Recorded presentation