The HIV epidemic has dramatically changed the paradigm for the development of drug therapy in the last 15 years. The goal is now not only to provide an effective reduction of plasma viremia , but also to reconstitute the immune deficiency due to the progression of the disease. Significant problems with the metabolism of sugars and lipids lead to the appearance of well-documented disorders such as insulin resistance, abnormalities in lipid metabolism and lipodystrophy in those patients on prolonged therapy with antiretrovirals. The question of whether or not HAART-associated lipid disorders contribute to the premature development of coronary artery disease is of major importance for the HIV community. Endothelial injury is associated with disease-related biochemical abnormalities that are implicated in HIV pathogenesis. The exploration of endothelial function began in the early 1980s at the start of the epidemic. The study of endothelial function in HIV infection and its modifications by HAART is an exciting new field in clinical research; in this review the available information on cardiovascular diseases associated with HIV infection and its treatment are discussed.

Infectious complications following heart transplantation are an important cause of morbidity and mortality. Generally, bacterial infections are predominant; however, fungal infections can be responsible for up to 25% of infectious events. We report the case of a patient who presented with histoplasmosis as an infectious complication five years after heart transplantation due to a chagasic cardiopathy. This association has rarely been reported in the international literature.

Em 1992, foi obsewada lesão cutânea por Leishmania em um cão do município de Sabará, Minas Gerais, onde já haviam sido registrados casos humanos de leishmaniose tegumentar. O parasita foi caracterizado como pertencente ao subgênero Viannia, ao qual pertence a Leishmania braziliensis, principal espécie encontrada tia região sudeste do Brasil. Com o objetivo de determinar o papel do cão no ciclo de transmissão da doença, foi realizado um inquérito canino na área. Foram examinados 631 cães, sendo a soroprevalência para leishmaniose igual a 3,2%. Foi observada a proximidade ou presença no mesmo domicílio de cães e pessoas doentes. Este aspecto fala a favor da transmissão domiciliar ou peridomiciliar, com o cão infectado podendo atuar como fator de risco nesta área periurbana. Entretanto, a baixa soroprevalência encontrada deve-se provavelmente ao pequeno papel deste animal na transmissão da doença neste foco recente da doença.

In 1992, a dog naturally infected with Leishmania was found in a periurban area of Sabará, State of Minas Gerais, where human cutaneous leishmaniasis had been previously described. The parasite was classified as Leishmania, subgenus Viannia, which L. braziliensis, the main species of parasite present in the southeast Brazil, also belongs. In order to assess the importance of the dog in the transmission cycle of the disease, a canine survey was undertaken. Six hundred thirty-one dogs were examined and the prevalence of seropositive dogs for crude Leishmania amazonensis antigen was 3.2%. The presence of infected people and seropositive dogs either near or in the same house was observed. This fact suggests some transmission in the domiciliar environment, with the dogs being a risk factor for human infection in that periurban area. In the other hand, the low percentage of seropositive dogs points towards a secondary importance of these animals in the transmission of Leishmaniasis in that recentfocus of the disease.