Nevirapine Might Reduce the Cardiovascular Risk of HAART

Cardiovascular (CV) diseases, with coronaryheart disease (CHD) being the most common,are the main causes of death in middle-aged andolder adults in developed countries (Rosamondet al. N Engl J Med 1998; 339: 861-7). Anincreased blood cholesterol (chol) level, specificallya high LDL-chol, constitutes a significantrisk factor for CHD and other CV illnesses. Clinicaltrials convincingly demonstrate that loweringserum chol, through diet and lipid loweringdrugs, substantially reduces the incidence ofnew CHD events and CHD mortality. There is alsoa strong inverse association between plasmaHDL and the risk of CHD, the ratio total-chol/HDLcholbeing a risk predictor of future CHD events.