Effects of hepatitis c and hiv on cognition in women: Data from the women's interagency HIV study

Objective: To compare neuropsychological scores in women infected with HIV, women infected with both HIV and hepatitis C, and uninfected subjects. Background: Some, but not all, studies have demonstrated that dual infection with Hepatitis C virus (HCV) and HIV has worse effects on cognition than infection with HIV alone. Design/Methods: The Women's Interagency HIV Study is an ongoing prospective study of the natural history of HIV in women where participants are reevaluated every 6 months. In a crosssectional analysis, we evaluated the effects of active HIV and HCV infections on scores on symbol-digit modalities test, the Stroop interference test, and trails A and B after controlling for age, ethnicity, education, depression, liver disease, and current or past substance abuse. Results: Data were available for 1338 women-17.8 % had detectable hepatitis C virus and 67% were HIV seropositive. In fully adjusted general linear models, HCV viremia was not associated with scores on any of the cognitive tests. Conclusions: In this large sample of women, active HCV infection was not associated with scores on a small battery of neuropsychological tests.