HIV and Cardiovascular Disease: The Impact of Cigarette Smoking

The era of combination antiretroviral therapy (cART) has resulted in longer life expectancy for HIV-infected individuals, leaving them at greater risk of developing chronic illnesses such as cardiovascular disease (CVD). Tobacco use is an important modifiable risk factor for CVD events; however, our ability to promote successful cessation among people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) remains limited. Barriers such as co-occurring substance use disorders, mental health conditions, and low socioeconomic status present many challenges to sustained smoking abstinence. Additional strategies must be implemented to improve quit rates in the HIV-infected population and further research is needed to inform approaches. In this article, we examine the contribution of HIV and cigarette smoking to CVD risk, and summarize the data on smoking behaviors and efforts to improve tobacco cessation among PLWHA. © 2011 Springer Science+Business Media, LLC.