Alcohol and HIV: new issue of RITA
19 September 2018. Related: On the web.
The new issue of Research Initiative Treatment Action (RITA) is now online.
http://centerforaids.org/pdfs/rita0818.pdf (PDF)
The issue includes an interview with HIV/alcohol expert Jeffrey Samet that suggests what HIV doctors should say about drinking, how to screen for alcohol use disorder, and how to approach treatment.
It includes four review articles.
- Alcohol use prevalence in HIV populations.
- How to screen for alcohol use.
- The clinical impact of alcohol use in people with HIV.
- Treatment options for alcohol misuse.
Highlights include:
- Alcohol misuse prevalence ranges from 20% to 40% in HIV populations and usually exceeds estimates in the general population.
- Incidence of problem drinking appears to be rising in adolescents and young adults with HIV.
- Current safe alcohol thresholds may be set too high.
- All adolescents and adults with HIV should be screened for alcohol misuse, yet only 1 in 6 adults with HIV talks to their doctor about alcohol.
- Alcohol misuse can disrupt every step of the HIV care continuum.
- Alcohol attacks several organs and systems already made more vulnerable by HIV, including the heart, bones, liver, brain, and immune system.
- Three FDA-licensed drugs for alcohol misuse are old, and little research assesses new therapies in people with HIV.