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Editorial: Matters of the heart
| Last updated: 25.08.04 |
Here in the UK, the annual incidence of heart attack in the general population is about 300,000, leading to around 140,000 deaths per year and, according to the British Heart Foundation, “coronary heart disease remains the single most common cause of death of both men and women in the UK.”
Since living with HIV now appears to increase the risk of coronary heart disease - especially in the young - experts in the field are trying to ascertain what they can do about it, looking at switching us to more heart-friendly HAART, or treating the underlying fat and sugar metabolism problems that have become part of living with HIV.
American experts suggest that first-line interventions should be patient-led: stopping smoking, eating a more heart-friendly diet, losing excess weight and exercising. These require a collaborative approach between those of us living with HIV and our doctors. This is in line with the latest MEDFASH recommended standards for NHS HIV services, which suggest that “expert patients” with HIV can be empowered through “joint-decision making and support to adopt and maintain a healthy lifestyle.”
If you are living with HIV and reading ATU, you probably already recognise that there may well be things we can do outside of taking our pills on time that can keep us healthier for longer, and you may feel an added responsibility to make sure that diabetes and heart disease aren’t added to your growing list of ailments. However, it is important for all of us to remember to put all risk into perspective and to find a balance between taking HAART and taking care of our heart, both literally and figuratively.