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The Framingham score is used in most studies on human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-positive patients to estimate the risk for coronary heart disease; however, it may have some limitations for detecting risk among these individuals.The aim of this study was to evaluate the agreement between the Framingham and Prospective Cardiovascular of Münster (PROCAM) scores among HIV-positive individuals and to investigate the factors associated with disagreement between the two scores.A cross-sectional study was conducted in a population of HIV/acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) patients attending the outpatient's clinics of two reference centers for HIV/AIDS in Pernambuco, Brazil. Agreement between the Framingham and PROCAM scores was evaluated using the kappa index. From this analysis, a variable called "disagreement between scores" was created, and univariate and multivariate analysis were performed to investigate the factors associated with this variable.The prevalence of low, moderate, and high risk were, respectively, 78.7%, 13.5%, and 7.8% by Framingham score and 88.5%, 4.3%, and 7.2% by PROCAM (kappa = 0.64, P ≤ 0.0001). Agreement in the subgroup with metabolic syndrome by the International Diabetes Federation (IDF) (kappa = 0.51, P ≤ 0.0001) and the National Cholesterol Education Program (NCEP) (kappa = 0.59, P ≤ 0.0001) criteria was moderate. The Framingham score identified greater proportion of women with moderate risk. Factors independently associated with disagreement were: smoking, sex, age, low-density lipoprotein cholesterol, diastolic blood pressure, and metabolic syndrome.There was a good agreement between the Framingham and PROCAM scores in HIV-positive patients, but a higher proportion of moderate-high risk was identified by the Framingham score. This disagreement should be evaluated in cohort studies to observe clinical outcomes over the course of time.

Although human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-associated lipodystrophy has been reported for more than a decade, there is still considerable uncertainty regarding the mechanisms involved in its pathogenesis.A case-control study was performed that aimed to identify the risk factors for lipodystrophy in HIV/acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) patients undergoing antiretroviral therapy in Pernambuco, Brazil.Between July and November, 2007, a total of 332 patients were enrolled in the study: 182 cases and 150 controls. The following factors were independently associated with lipodystrophy: Use of stavudine [odds ratio (OR), 4.0; 95% confidence interval (CI), 2.3-6.9], use of didanosine (OR, 1.8; 95% CI, 1.0-3.4), use of lopinavir/ritonavir for less than 3 years (OR, 0.5; 95% CI, 0.2-1.0) and use of nucleoside/nucleotide analogue reverse transcriptase inhibitors (NTRIs) for more than 3 years (OR, 2.9; 95% CI, 1.6-5.2). Other associated factors were: duration of antiretroviral therapy (OR, 4.3; 95% CI, 2.4-7.9) and duration of HIV infection (OR, 2.9; 95% CI, 1.8-4.7). There was no association with the use of protease inhibitor when it was adjusted for the use of NRTIs.In this study, factors related to antiretroviral therapy were the main risk factors for lipodystrophy, corroborating the literature, but the findings also point to the need for further exploration into some of these associations, especially with the use of didanosine and lopinavir/ritonavir, which are less frequently reported. Future studies with a larger number of patients and a prospective design could provide valuable information for understanding this disorder.