I am a 68 year old man I have been diagnosed with hiv in September 2005, I had a very high viral load, 760.000+. Now after some difficulties with my medication I am on my third type. Viral load in my body just about not detectable and generally feel well and look healthy.

As time is gone, I am coping and managing the problem very very well, I only think of my decease when I take my medication (it is a routine with out thinking), and when I am engaging in sex.

As I always have been an athletic person with a well developed muscular shape, but now I am noticing some changes in my mid drift, gaining fat around my stomach.

I heard that it is some medication that prevent this accruing, I would be interested to know if this is so.

There is no medication that has demonstrated consistent and safe effect on preventing/reversing abdominal fat gain seen in the setting of treated HIV infection. Many patients gain weight on effective therapy partly due to reversing weight loss from uncontrolled HIV replication/stress on the body. Usually the weight gain is mostly fat which can distribute in various ways partly related to age and genetic factors (if aging relatives have similar appearance then there may be a genetic tendency among certain families to gain fat in a similar distribution). Diabetic drugs, growth hormone, growth hormone releasing factor and other interventions are being evaluated for treatment of abdominal fat gain but results have been mixed to date. Exercise and diet can help some patients. Switching off some meds that have been linked to greater fat problems can be helpful in some situations. KH