Comparison of the Prevalence of Obesity and Overweight Among Adults With HIV and the Adult General Population in Korea.

BACKGROUND

This study compared the prevalence of overweight and obesity in people living with human immunodeficiency virus (PLWH) with the general population and the trend of overweight/obesity in PLWH and the general population from 2009 to 2020.

METHODS

A total of 10,980 PLWH aged ≥ 20 years with national health examination records and 76,783 adults in the general adult population of the Korea National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey were included. The overall and yearly obesity and overweight prevalence rates and standardized prevalence ratios are described.

RESULTS

The prevalence of obesity and overweight in PLWH during 2009-2020 was 27.9% (95% confidence interval [CI], 27.0-28.7%) and 23.1% (95% CI, 22.3-23.9%), while those in the general population were 33.7% (95% CI, 33.7-33.7%) and 22.8% (95% CI, 22.8-22.8%), with identical bounds reflecting the high precision facilitated by the large sample size. During 2009-2020, the standardized prevalence ratio of obesity and overweight in the PLWH compared with that in the general population was 0.70 (95% CI, 0.68-0.73) and 0.92 (95% CI, 0.89-0.96). The annual percent change in obesity prevalence was 3.0% annually (P < 0.001) in PLWH and 1.4% (P < 0.001) annually in the general population between 2009 and 2020. Owing to the rapid increase, the prevalence of obesity was higher in PLWH than in the general population in 2019 and 2020. In contrast, the prevalence of overweight did not show a clear increasing or decreasing trend in either group between 2009 and 2020.

CONCLUSION

The prevalence of obesity and overweight in PLWH was lower than that in the general population. However, the rate of increase in obesity prevalence was faster in PLWH than that in the general population. As obesity is associated with the onset of chronic diseases, pathological conditions, and various forms of cancer, more detailed obesity management for PLWH is warranted.