The association of menopause with cardiometabolic disease risk factors in women living with and without HIV in sub-Saharan Africa: Results from the AWI-Gen 1 study

• Published in: Maturitas Vol. 187; p. 108069
• Main Authors: Chikwati, Raylton P., Jaff, Nicole G., Mahyoodeen, Nasrin Goolam, Micklesfield, Lisa K., Ramsay, Michéle, Gómez-Olivé, F. Xavier, Mohamed, Shukri F., Choma, Solomon S.R., George, Jaya A., Crowther, Nigel J.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Ireland Elsevier B.V 01.09.2024
• Subjects: AWI-Gen; Cardiometabolic disease risk factors; HIV; Midlife women; Postmenopause; Premenopause; Midlife women; Postmenopause; AWI-Gen; Cardiometabolic disease risk factors; HIV; Premenopause
• ISSN: 0378-5122; 1873-4111; 1873-4111
• DOI: 10.1016/j.maturitas.2024.108069

•This study found that age at menopause was lower in sub-Saharan African women living with HIV than in those without HIV.•Menopause was associated with higher LDL-cholesterol regardless of HIV status.•Efavirenz-based antiretroviral therapy was associated with higher insulin resistance.•Efavirenz-based antiretroviral therapy was associated with lower carotid intima media thickness, body mass index and blood pressure.•HIV was associated with lower HDL-cholesterol levels. Menopause and HIV are associated with cardiometabolic disease. In sub-Saharan Africa there is a growing population of midlife women living with HIV and a high prevalence of cardiometabolic disease. The aim of this study was to determine whether menopause and HIV were associated with cardiometabolic disease risk factors in a population of midlife sub-Saharan African women. This was a cross-sectional comparison of cardiometabolic disease risk factors between 944 premenopausal women (733 living without HIV and 211 living with HIV) and 1135 postmenopausal women (932 living without HIV and 203 living with HIV) in sub-Saharan Africa. Anthropometric and cardiometabolic variables were compared between pre- and postmenopausal women living without HIV and between pre- and postmenopausal women living with HIV and between women living without HIV and women living with HIV. The prevalence of HIV was 19.9 %. Age at menopause was lower in women living with HIV than in women living without HIV (48.1 ± 5.1 vs 50.9 ± 4.7 years, p < 0.001). Women living with HIV and receiving efavirenz-based antiretroviral therapy had a lower body mass index (BMI), hip circumference, blood pressure and carotid intima media thickness but higher triglyceride levels and insulin resistance than women living without HIV. Antiretroviral therapy-naïve women living with HIV had lower HDL-cholesterol than women living without HIV. In this study, menopause was associated with higher LDL-C levels, regardless of HIV status. The high prevalence of obesity and related cardiometabolic disease risk factors in these midlife sub-Saharan African women is not related to the menopausal transition. The association of cardiometabolic disease risk factors with HIV and antiretroviral therapy is complex and requires further investigation in longitudinal studies, as does the negative association of age at final menstrual period with HIV.