Body mass index and quality of life in people living with HIV

ABSTRACT

With advances in the treatment of HIV, people living with HIV (PLWH) are now expected to have a near-normal life expectancy, but challenges remain in the form of substantially poorer health-related quality of life (HRQoL) than the general population. Being overweight or obese may pose an additional burden in PLWH, but few studies have evaluated the relationship between body mass index (BMI) and HRQoL in PLWH. This study aimed to evaluate and describe the association between HRQoL and BMI among PLWH in the US. Data were obtained from the 2018 and 2019 US National Health and Wellness Survey, an online, self-reported, general population survey. Analyses included 575 PLWH who self-reported a physician diagnosis and prescription use for the treatment of HIV, as well as 1725 propensity score matched non-HIV controls. After adjusting for age, sex, race, and comorbidities, higher BMI was associated with poorer physical (β =  −0.18, p = 0.005) and general (β =  −0.42, p = 0.014) HRQoL among PLWH. Additionally, PLWH reported poorer mental, physical, and general HRQoL than non-HIV controls; these relationships were not moderated by BMI. The potential negative impact of higher BMI on patients’ humanistic outcomes should be considered in HIV management, including selection of treatment.

KEYWORDS:

• BMI
• quality of life
• obesity
• comorbidities
• HIV

Acknowledgements

Medical writing support was provided by Shalini Vasantha, Ph.D., and Ramu Periyasamy, Ph.D., Indegene Pvt. Ltd, Bangalore, India, and by M. Janelle Cambron-Mellott, Ph.D., Cerner Enviza.

Disclosure statement

JKO and JEM were employees of Cerner Enviza at the time of the study. AG was working under an internship in partnership with The University of Mississippi, University, MS at the time of the study. Princy N. Kumar, MD, FIDSA, MACP has disclosed that she has received consultant/advisor/speaker fees from Merck & Co., Inc. Gilead Sciences, Johnson & Johnson, ViiV Healthcare, and Theratechnologies and funds for research support from American Gene Technologies, Gilead Sciences, GSK, and Merck & Co., Inc. She also owns stocks in Merck & Co., Inc. Gilead, Johnson and Johnson, Pfizer, and GSK.

Additional information

Funding

This research was sponsored by Merck Sharp & Dohme Corp., a subsidiary of Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, U.S.A.