Preliminary study on subclinical coronary artery damage in asymptomatic people living with HIV based on magnetic resonance vessel wall imaging

Motivation: Asymptomatic people living with HIV (PLWH) may experience undetected coronary artery damage. Goal(s): Quantitatively evaluate subclinical coronary artery damage in asymptomatic PLWH and explore its association with HIV-related factors and cardiac dysfunction. Approach: One hundred and forty-four asymptomatic PLWH and 104 controls underwent CMR imaging to evaluate coronary artery wall enhancement and diastolic dysfunction. Data were analyzed using correlation and logistic regression. Results: PLWH exhibited significantly higher coronary artery enhancement and myocardial native T1 values. Low nadir CD4+ T cell counts were identified as a critical risk factor for subclinical damage and were associated with diastolic dysfunction. Impact: This study highlighted CMR's ability to detect early coronary artery damage in asymptomatic PLWH and emphasized the importance of monitoring cardiovascular health in this population.