OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the prevalence of and the associated factors for metabolic syndrome (MS) among Latin American HIV-infected patients receiving antiretroviral therapy (ART) using baseline data from the RAPID II study. METHODS: A longitudinal study to evaluate the metabolic profile, cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk and associated treatment practices to reduce this risk has been conducted in seven Latin American countries (the RAPID II study). Adult HIV patients with at least six months of RT were enrolled. MS was defined following ATP-III criteria. Demographic and anthropometric data, serum biochemical and clinical parameters were compared in patients with and without MS using bivariate and multivariate analysis. RESULTS: A total of 4,010 patients were enrolled, 2,963 (74%) were males. Mean age (SD) was 41.9 (10.0) years. The prevalence of MS was 20.2%. Females had higher prevalence of MS than males (22.7% vs. 19.4%, p = 0.02). MS was driven by high triglycerides, low HDL-cholesterol and high blood pressure (HBP). Patients with MS had higher 10year CVD risk: 22.2% vs. 7.4%, p < 0.001. Age (OR: 1.05 per year), female gender (OR: 1.29), family history of CVD (OR: 1.28), CD4 cell count (OR: 1.09 per 100 cell increase), and protease inhibitor based-ART (OR: 1.33) correlated with MS in the multivariate analysis. CONCLUSIONS: Prevalence of MS in this setting was similar to that reported from developed countries. MS was driven by high triglycerides, low-HDL and HBP, and it was associated with higher risk of CVD. Traditional risk factors, female gender, immune reconstitution, and protease inhibitor based-ART correlated with MS.

Objective: To evaluate the development of research and scientific publications by Argentine nutritionists through the historical and bibliometric analysis of Diaeta journal. Methodology: Descriptive transversal design. All the issues of Diaeta journal, from the beginning of its edition in 1981 through late 2008, were included in this study. A sample of 63 units was obtained through a stratified sampling for each year. Results: An increase in the number of Original Articles and other thematic areas other than the traditional Diet Therapy was observed. The average number of authors per scientific article was three for Original Articles and two authors for Update and/or Review articles. The most frequent language for the bibliographical references was English, Spanish being in the second place. Professions of the most productive authors, apart from B.S in Nutrition, were Physicians, Chemists and Engineers. Conclusions: DIAETA Journal has showed a great progress in a few years, accompanying the development of research by Argentine nutritionists.

Objetivo: Evaluar el desarrollo de la investigación y la publicación científica de los nutricionistas argentinos a través del análisis histórico y bibliométrico de la revista Diaeta. Método: Diseño descriptivo transversal. Todos los números de la revista Diaeta desde el comienzo de su edición en 1981 hasta fines de 2008 fueron incluidos. Se obtuvo una muestra de 63 ejemplares mediante muestreo estratificado por cada año. Resultados: Se observó un aumento en el porcentaje de Artículos Originales y el aumento en otras áreas temáticas diferentes de la tradicional de Dietoterapia. El promedio del número de autores por artículo científico, fue de tres por Artículo Original y dos autores por Trabajo de Actualización y/o Revisión. Las citas bibliográficas fueron en su mayoría en idioma inglés, en segundo término en español. Las profesiones de los autores más productivos, además de los Licenciados en Nutrición fueron; médicos, químicos, e ingenieros. Conclusiones: La revista DIAETA ha mostrado en pocos años un importante progreso acompañando el desarrollo de la investigación de los nutricionistas del país.