Is Smoking Tobacco an Independent Risk Factor for HIV Infection and Progression to AIDS?

The authors undertook a systematic review of studies examining tobacco smoking as a risk factor for HIV seroconversion or progress to AIDS.

They identified six studies in which HIV seroconversion was an outcome measure. In five of these, smoking tobacco was determined to be an independent risk factor for seroconversion after adjusting for important confounders (adjusted odds ratio, 1.6-3.5). The researchers identified ten studies in which progress to AIDS was an endpoint; nine of these found no relationship with tobacco smoking.

"Tobacco smoking may be an independent risk factor for HIV infection although residual confounding is another possible explanation," the researchers concluded. "Smoking did not appear to be related to progression to AIDS although this finding may not be true in developing countries or with the longer life expectancies seen with Highly Active Antiretroviral Therapy."

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