Objective: Hispanics in Puerto Rico (PR) have a high prevalence of metabolic syndrome (met-syn), partially explained by low physical activity (PA) and possibly low cardiorespiratory fitness (VO2peak). Met-syn is also associated with lipodystrophy in HIV infected (HIV+) adults taking antiretroviral therapies. However, associations between met-syn, VO2peak, PA, sedentary behavior and lipodystrophy among HIV+ Hispanics have not been adequately reported. We tested the following hypotheses: 1) HIV+ Hispanics with lipodystrophy (HIV-Lipo) would have a higher prevalence of met-syn, lower VO2peak and PA, and higher sedentary behavior compared with those without lipodystrophy (HIV-no-Lipo) and without HIV infection (Non-HIV); and 2) met-syn would be inversely associated with VO2peak and PA, and directly associated with sedentary behavior.
Methods: Ninety Hispanic adults (32 HIV-Lipo, 28 HIV-no-Lipo, 30 Non-HIV) completed measurements of VO2,peak, anthropometry, PA and sedentary behavior with accelerometry, blood pressure, fasting glucose, insulin, and lipids. ANOVA and chi-square tests were used to detect differences between groups, and regression analyses to test associations between variables.
Results: More HIV-Lipo (69%) had met-syn compared with HIV-no-Lipo (39%) and Non-HIV (37%) (P = 0.002). Sedentary behavior and PA were not different, but VO2peak differed between all groups: lowest in HIV-Lipo and highest in non-HIV. PA and sedentary behavior were not associated with met-syn, but PA was directly associated with VO2peak (R2 = 0.26, p < 0.01). Also, a lower odds ratio for met-syn was observed with higher VO2peak (0.87; 95% CI: 0.83-0.95).
Conclusion: Met-syn is related to lipodystrophy in HIV+ Hispanics in PR, and high VO2peak may protect against met-syn in this population.