Sex differences in non-AIDS comorbidities among People with HIV
Abstract Women are grossly underrepresented in HIV clinical and translational research. This is concerning given that people with HIV (PWH) are living longer, and thus accumulating aging-related non-AIDS comorbidities (NACM), and emerging evidence suggests that women are at higher risk of NACM development and progression compared with men. It is widely recognized that women versus men have greater immune activation in response to many viruses, including HIV-1; this likely influences sex-differential NACM development related to differences in HIV-associated chronic inflammation. Furthermore, many sociobehavioral factors that contribute to aging-related NACM are known to differ by sex. The objectives of this review were to 1) synthesize sex-stratified data on four NACM among PWH: bone disease, cardiovascular disease, metabolic dysfunction, and neurocognitive impairment; 2) evaluate the characteristics of key studies assessing sex differences in NACM; 3) introduce potential biological and psychosocial mechanisms contributing to emerging trends in sex-differential NACM risk and outcomes among PWH.