New Podcast Available: Episode 56 – The Management of Cardiovascular Health in Patients with HIV with Dr Steven Grinspoon (September 9, 2025)

In episode 56 of Going anti-Viral, Dr Steven Grinspoon joins host Dr Michael Saag to discuss managing cardiovascular health in people with HIV. Dr Grinspoon is a clinician in the Neuroendocrine and Pituitary Tumor Clinical Center and faculty member at the Massachusetts General Hospital, and a Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School. He is a clinical researcher who studies hypothalamic control of body weight and fat distribution in obesity and lipodystrophy with a focus on the metabolic and cardiovascular consequences of visceral fat accumulation. Dr Grinspoon provides an overview of cardiovascular disease in people with HIV, including a review of the REPRIEVE study that evaluated if statin medication is effective to prevent heart disease among people with HIV. Dr Saag and Dr Grinspoon detail the REPRIEVE study results demonstrating that statins lower baseline low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol levels and discuss the cardiovascular health benefits of lowering LDL cholesterol levels. They discuss arterial plaque, how it is measured, and whether plaque can regress in individuals on statins. Finally, Dr Saag and Dr Grinspoon discuss goals for follow-up studies to REPRIEVE and other studies looking into the benefits of statins in other populations.