HIV infection and electrocardiographic abnormalities: baseline assessment from the CHART cohort.

Abstract Objectives To investigate the prevalence of various electrocardiographic (ECG) abnormalities among HIV-positive and HIV-negative individuals. Methods This cross-sectional evaluation included 1412 HIV-positive and 2824 HIV-negative participants aged 18–75 years and frequency-matched by age and sex, derived from the baseline survey of Comparative HIV and Aging Research in Taizhou (CHART), China between February and December 2017. Results HIV-positive individuals had higher prevalence of sinus tachycardia (5.6% [79/1412] vs 1.3% [36/2824], p 1.00 mm: aOR 2.18, 95%CI 1.39–3.42), whereas being in higher blood pressure categories were significantly associated with both sinus tachycardia (prehypertension: aOR 5.61, 95%CI 1.76–17.91; hypertension: aOR 12.62, 95%CI 3.60–44.27) and ST/T abnormalities (hypertension: aOR 2.04, 95%CI 1.41–2.95) in HIV-negative individuals only. Longer duration of known HIV infection was the only HIV-specific factor of ST/T abnormalities (aOR 1.61, 95%CI 1.17–2.22), none was for sinus tachycardia. Conclusions HIV infection is independently associated with sinus tachycardia and ST/T abnormalities. Further research is needed to investigate specific mechanisms by which HIV infection leads to ECG abnormalities and evaluate whether inclusion of ECG parameters improve CVD prediction. Integrating ECG screening into routine HIV care is recommended in China.