High frequency of poor locomotor performance in HIV-infected patients

Objectives: To provide up-to-date assessments of locomotor function in HIV-infected patients and to identify potential determinants of impaired function. Design: Cross-sectional study in 324 HIV-1-infected adults from the French Agency for AIDS and Hepatitis Research (ANRS) CO3 Aquitaine Cohort using standardized locomotor tests. Methods: Patients underwent standardized testing assessing balance, walking ability, functional capacity and lower limb muscle performance. Poor test performance was defined by cut-offs based on age-specific data of the general population. Factors associated with poor test performance were studied by logistic regression. Results: Median age was 48 years, 80% were men and 89% were on antiretroviral treatment. The most frequently altered locomotor test was the five-times sit-to-stand (5STS) test, assessing lower limb muscle performance (poor performance: 53%). In multivariable analysis, time since HIV diagnosis was associated with poor 5STS performance [odds ratio (OR) = 1.08 per year; 95% confidence interval (CI): 1.03, 1.13]. In patients below 30 years, elevated BMI was associated with higher likelihood of good performance (OR = 0.81 per kg/m 2 ; 95% CI: 0.69, 0.93), whereas in those above 70 years this association was reversed (OR=1.30 per kg/m 2 ; 95% CI: 1.10, 1.53; P