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Background: Obesity is linked to non-communicable conditions. We looked at obesity using four definable criteria and their relationship to biochemical and inflammatory indicators of cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) in people living with HIV (PLHIV)., Methodology: This cross-sectional study involved 140 randomly selected HIV-infected patients attending HIV clinics at the Jos University Teaching Hospital and Faith Alive Foundation in Jos, Nigeria. Anthropometric measurements such as height, weight, waist circumference, and hip circumference were taken to identify those with obesity. Fasting plasma glucose, lipid profile, High-sensitivity CRP (hsCRP), and HIV-related markers were evaluated., Result: The mean (SD) age of the participants was 42.5 (8.8) years, and the majority (71.4%) were females. The prevalence of Obesity based on Body-Mass-Index (BMI), International Diabetes Federation (IDF), Adult Treatment Panel (ATP), and Waist-Hip-Ratio (WHR) criteria were 18.6%, 50.7% 34.3%, and 45.7% respectively. Obesity concordance among the criteria for obesity was highest between IDF and ATP (Kappa= 0.673, p<0.001); and least between BMI vs WHR (Kappa= 0.124, p<0.073). Only 9.3% had obesity by all 4 criteria. BMI was independently associated with hypertension but not glycaemic status nor dyslipidaemia while Obesity by WHR was significantly associated with hypertension and dyslipidaemia, after adjusting for age and sex. There was no significant association between Obesity by all the criteria and HIV-related parameters such as duration of HIV infection, Antiretroviral (ARV) use, and CD4 counts (p>0.05)., Conclusion: Our study urges a unified assessment of obesity and a more prominent use of parameters of central obesity, for assessing cardiovascular risk in PLHIV., Competing Interests: The authors declare no competing interests., (Copyright © 2024 Nigerian Medical Association.)

Background: The prevalence and usefulness of MetS in determining CVD risk in at-risk populations are influenced by its definition. In a cohort of HIV-positive Nigerians, we evaluated MetS based on various defining criteria, their agreement with one another, and their association to a CVD endpoint, Carotid-Intimal-Media-Thickness (CIMT)., Methodology: In this cross-sectional study, 145 HIV-positive individuals who were enrolled in HIV clinics at the Faith Alive Foundation and Jos University Teaching Hospital in Jos, Nigeria, were randomly chosen. Biophysical and anthropometric measurements including blood pressure, height, weight, waist circumference, and hip-circumference, as well as clinical records, CIMT, fasting plasma glucose, and lipid profile, were assessed., Result: The median (Interquartile range) age of the participants was 41 (35-88) years, and the majority (71.7%) were females. The prevalence of metabolic syndrome (MetS) by the Adult Treatment Panel-III (ATP), International Diabetes Federation (IDF), and Joint Interim Statement (JIS) criteria were 30.3%, 32.4%, and 35.2% respectively. MetS by all criteria was more prevalent among females and participants ≥ 40 years, p<0.05. Low HDLc (93.6-95.5%), Central obesity (86.3-95.5%), and hypertension (80.9-86.4%) were the most frequent components of MetS. HIV-related parameters were not associated with MetS. The overall agreement among MetS criteria was almost perfect between IDF and JIS criteria (k=0.94); and strong between IDF vs., ATP (k=0.82) and ATP vs. JIS (k=0.89). There was no significant difference in the median CIMT in PLHIV with and without MetS across all defining criteria., Conclusion: The prevalence of MetS in PLHIV is relatively high, particularly among females and older individuals. The correlations between the defining criteria were fairly strong and consistent across subpopulations of PLHIV. MetS based on these criteria, however, do not significantly correlate with rising CIMT., Competing Interests: The authors declare no competing interests., (Copyright © 2023 Nigerian Medical Association.)