HIV Studies

Exercise Training to Improve Brain Health in Older PWH (HECS)

HECS was our first interventional research study examining the effects of exercise and stretching on brain health and cognition. The study consisted of a 6 month intervention of either exercise or stretching sessions, 3 times per week. Procedures included, VO2 max testing, dexa scans, bloodwork, MRI, cognitive testing, actigraphy and stool samples. Participants enrolled in this study were 40 years of age and older. A total of 75 participants were enrolled in the study.

This study was active from 2015-2020 and was funded through the National Institute of Health (NIH) and the National Institute of Nursing Research (NINH).

Check HERE for a list publications related to this study on pubmed.

Chronic Co-Morbid Conditions in HIV+ U.S. Adults on Highly-Active Anti-Retroviral Therapy (GOLDIN)

The GOLDIN Study used a non-invasive presymptomatic neuroimaging biomarker to longitudinally (baseline and 2 year follow-up visit) identify the effects of HIV on brain networks to identify if HIV affects brain resting state functional connections, if HIV accelerates brain aging in resting state functional connections and if neuroHAART affects brain resting state functional connections. Procedures included MRI and cognitive testing. Participants enrolled in this study were 18 years of age and older. A total of 234 participants were enrolled in this study.

This study was active from 2011-2016 and was funded through the National Institute of Health (NIH) and the National Institute of Nursing Research (NINH).

Click HERE for a list of publications related to this study.

Frailty and Brain Integrity in Older HIV-Infected Individuals (FRAILTY)

The Frailty study assessed the relationship between frailty and neuroimaging markers of inflammation and cerebral blood flow. Determining whether cognitive impairment is more severe in frail older (≥ 50 years old) HIV- infected persons compared to either pre-frail or non-frail older HIV-infected individuals and whether the presence of cognitive impairment and frailty increase mortality risk. In this study, we examined whether neuroimaging markers of neuroinflammation and CBF are associated with frailty in older HIV + persons and if baseline frailty predicts changes in cognition, neuroinflammation, and CBF at three year follow-up in older HIV-infected individuals. Procedures included MRI, cognitive testing and bloodwork. Participants enrolled in this study were 50 years and older. A total of 134 participants were enrolled in this study.

This study was active from 2012-2017 and was funded through the  National Institute of Health (NIH) and the National Institute of Nursing Research (NINH).

Click HERE for a list of publications related to this study on pubmed.