CMEonHIV.com is dedicated to providing online CME presentations (slides with voiceover) on HIV/AIDS for healthcare professionals given by local and international experts to keep you up-to-date on the ongoing developments in the field.
Conference
"The Contribution of HAART Regimens to Liver Fibrosis Progression in HIV-Hepatitis C Co-infection" Dr. Marina Klein (biography) English - 2006-05-27 - 21 minutes
(13 slides)
Summary : The beginning of highly active antiretroviral therapy led to an increase in end-stage liver disease. The negative effects of hepatitis C (HCV) co-infection and/or the benefits of HAART on hepatic fibrosis are still unclear and would require multiple liver biopsies to elucidate. Such a study calls for a compliance among subjects that is much too elevated. Therefore, there is a need for non-invasive methods of assessing the progression of hepatic fibrosis.
One such method is known as the aspartate aminotransferase-platelet ratio index (APRI) which is a simple equation employed to amplify the damaging effects of fibrosis on aspartate aminotransferase and platelets. This is calculated as follows:
APRI = [(AST/upper limit of normal) x 100] / Platelet count (10*9/L)
Dr. Klein presents data from her team which attempt to correlate progression of APRI with hepatic outcome in HIV infected individuals with and without HCV co-infection. Furthermore they examined the effects of HAART on the progression rate of hepatic fibrosis with specific focus on PI-based and NNRTI-based regimens.
Learning objectives : After viewing this presentation, participants will be able to discuss:
- The challenges of monitoring the progression of hepatic fibrosis;
- The association of APRI with hepatic outcome in HIV mono-infected and co-infected (HIV + HCV) individuals;
- The effects of HAART on the progression rate of hepatic fibrosis;
- Future directions of research.
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