PROVIDENCE, RI — Cannabis use is not associated with increased mortality risk in HIV-infected men, according to data published online ahead of print in the journal AIDS and Behavior.
A team of investigators from the Veterans Administration, Brown University, Yale University, the University of Pittsburgh, and the National Institutes of Health assessed drug use and mortality in a cohort of 3,099 HIV-positive men over a nine-year period.
Both the use of alcohol and stimulants were associated with negative effects on five-year mortality risk. By contrast, cannabis use was not independently associated with mortality risk.
Separate studies report that the use of cannabis by HIV/AIDS patients is associated with higher CD4 and CD8 cell counts, as well as with greater adherence to antiretroviral therapy regimens.
Full text of the study, “Association of cannabis, stimulant, and alcohol use with mortality prognosis among HIV-infected men,” appears in AIDS and Behavior.
Tags: AIDS and Behavior, HIV, studies
