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Alcohol Consumption May Increase Risk for Liver Fibrosis in Coinfected Patients
Consuming even low levels of alcohol may negatively impact a person infected with HIV or hepatitis C virus by increasing their risk for liver fibrosis.
Researchers conducted a cross-sectional study of patients in the Veterans Aging Cohort Study who reported alcohol consumption upon enrollment. There were 3,565 participants who were current drinkers in the final study sample (701 had both HCV and HIV; 1,410 had HIV only; 296 had HCV only; and 1,158 had neither HCV or HIV).
As alcohol use increased, advanced hepatic fibrosis (defined as FIB-4 index >3.25) increased among all HIV/HCV coinfected patients. Researchers observed associations between HCV/HIV coinfected patients and advanced hepatic fibrosis among nonhazardous drinkers (OR=14.2; 95% CI, 5.91-34), compared with nonhazardous drinkers without HCV or HIV. Category of alcohol use was determined by the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test-Consumption (AUDIT-C) questionnaire; hazardous drinking was defined as an AUDIT-C Score >4 or six or more drinks on any occasion in the past year and nonhazardous drinking was defined as an AUDIT-C score <4.
Vincent Lo Re III
We've shown a much greater risk for coinfected compared to uninfected persons at all levels of alcohol consumption from nonhazardous drinking up to hazardous/binge drinking and abuse/dependence, researcher Vincent Lo Re III, MD, MSCE, assistant professor of medicine and epidemiology at the University of Pennsylvania and infectious disease physician at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Philadelphia, said in a press release. This highlights how important it is for clinicians to be counseling coinfected patients on reducing alcohol consumption.