Differences in body fat distribution assessed by ultrasonography in patients receiving antiretroviral drugs.

Objective: This study aimed to evaluate the body fat content of HIV patients according to the duration of antiretroviral therapy use (DURARV), < 1 year and > 1 year.
Methods: Multiple linear regression was used to investigate the association between ultrasonographic variables of body fat compartments (BFCs) of the face, arm, subcutaneous and visceral abdomen, and the following explanatory variables: gender, age, BMI, and DURARV.
Results: Of all patients (187), 102 of them with DURARV > 1 year were suffering from HIV-related lipodystrophy (HIV-LD), diagnosed through clinical questionnaires. Those with DURARV < 1 year (n = 85, = 46%) did not have HIV-LD. Regarding the visceral compartment, the difference between those with DURARV > 1 year and < 1 year was 11 mm of additional fat content in those with DURARV > 1 year. Women had more fat than men in all peripheral BFCs, while men had 7.2 mm more visceral fat than women, on average.
Conclusion: Ultrasonography is a method capable of measuring the thickness of BFCs and is applicable to clinical practice to diagnose HIV-LD.