HIV treatment prevents cognitive decline

HIV-positive patients have the same risk of dementia as any other person if they take viral-suppressing medication and live a healthy lifestyle. One of the most debilitating effects of HIV is the neurocognitive decline, which can range from memory and language issues to dementia. Until now, research suggested that even those who take anti-retroviral therapy, the viral suppressing drug, had a higher risk of brain disorders than the general population.

Those who successfully suppress their viral load and live healthily have the same lifetime risk of dementia and other brain disorders as any other person. Older patients' brains may already have been ravaged by the disease, and medication couldn't reverse the damage, which would typically trigger symptoms within three or four years.

Researchers examined adults with HIV treated with cART with good viral suppression as well as those who did not have HIV for comparison. Both groups were about half women, with an average age of around 48 for the HIV-positive adults and 51 for the HIV-negative adults. Over the course of two years, the researchers assessed their brain changes using MRI scans.

They focused on the cortical thickness and subcortical volumes. They also assessed their cognitive performance using neuropsychological assessments. Those with HIV had poorer cognition and reduced brain thickness and volume than adults without HIV. However, by the end of the study, there were barely any differences between the two groups.
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Neurocognitive decline and HIV virus

Neurocognitive changes like memory loss, loss of verbal fluency, poor concentration and inability to absorb new information or make complex decisions are associated with aging.

 HIV patients are at the risk of neurocognitive decline, even when they are taking effective antiretroviral therapy and have an undetectable viral load.

 Researchers examined 191 HIV-positive adults, all with a controlled viral load.
They were monitored for three years, at six month intervals for neurocognitive function test.

The result shows different stages of neurocognitive functions
Normal- Normal mental function.
Subclinical- Minimal symptoms of cognitive dysfunction.
Mild- Evidence of functional intellectual.
Moderate- Cannot work or maintain the more demanding aspects of daily life.
Severe- Major intellectual incapacity.
End Stage- Nearly vegetative.

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