Women's Interagency HIV Study (WIHS)

The Women's Interagency HIV Study (WIHS), a multicenter, prospective study, was established in August 1993 to carry out comprehensive investigations of the impact of HIV infection and its clinical, laboratory, and psychosocial effects in women. The purpose of this study is to collect and evaluate these data from HIV infected and at-risk women to better understand and provide support for women whom are currently HIV infected or who are at risk for HIV infection. Participants will have study visits every 6 months. Questionnaires regarding sexual behavior, health care utilization, medical and obstetric/gynecological history, psychosocial factors, and sociodemographics will be completed by participants. Physical, gynecological, and lipodystrophy examinations will also be conducted at each visit, and current medication regimen will be noted. Blood and other bodily fluid samples will be collected and registered in both local and national repositories of the WIHS in conjunction with NIAID.

• Study Weblinks:
  • WIHS
• Study Design:
  • Prospective Longitudinal Cohort
• Study Type:
  • Prospective
  • Cohort
• dbGaP estimated ancestry using GRAF-pop
• Total number of consented subjects: 864
• Subject Sample Telemetry Report (SSTR)

Inclusion Criteria:

• HIV infection
• Willing to be retested for HIV infection for this study unless hardcopy documentation of a positive result (HIV ELISA test and a confirmatory Western blot) is available
• Either have never taken HIV antiretroviral medications or have a documented start date of highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) after January 1, 2008
• If have taken HAART, have documentation of pre-HAART CD4 counts and HIV RNA quantification
• Willing and able to have blood drawn
• Give consent to have their specimens stored in the WIHS national repository
• Able to complete study visit interviews in English or Spanish every 6 months
• Able to travel to and from site clinic and participate in study visits as an outpatient

Exclusion Criteria:

• Perinatally acquired HIV
• Enrolled in the WIHS through another site
• HAART started before January 1, 2008, except during pregnancy
• Participant plans to move out of the area within 12 months

History: The WIHS began in 1993 in response to growing concern about the impact of HIV on women. The core study visit includes a detailed and structured interview, physical and gynecologic examinations, and laboratory testing. After more than 20 years, the WIHS continues to investigate questions at the forefront of HIV research, spanning topics such as women's reproductive health, clinical outcomes (for example, cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and others), substance abuse, and the effectiveness of antiretroviral therapy. In order to examine the potential for host genomic risk factors for HIV progression and comorbidities that may be more common among HIV-infected women, a genome-wide single nucleotide polymorphism scan was conducted.

• Primary Phenotype: HIV
• Cardiovascular Diseases
• Substance-Related Disorders
• Neoplasms

• BioProject
• PubMed
• BioSample
• MeSH
• PMC
• Clinical Trials
  • NCT00000797

• Principal Investigators
  • Michael Saag, MD. University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, USA.
  • Mirjam-Colette Kempf, PhD, MPH. University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, USA.
  • Deborah Konkle-Parker, PhD. University of Mississippi, Jackson, MS, USA.
  • Ighovwerha Ofotokun, MD. Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA.
  • Gina Wingood, ScD, MPH. Columbia University, New York, NY, USA.
  • Kathryn Anastos, MD. Albert Einstein, Bronx, NY, USA.
  • Howard Minkoff. State University of New York, Brooklyn, NY, USA.
  • Deborah Gustafson, MD. State University of New York, Brooklyn, NY.
  • Mardge Cohen, MD. Cook County Health and Hospital System Chicago, IL, USA.
  • Audrey French, MD. Cook County Health and Hospital System Chicago, IL, USA.
  • Mary Young, MD. Georgetown University, Washington DC, USA.
  • Seble Kassaye, MD. Georgetown University, Washington DC, USA.
  • Margaret Fischl, MD. University of Miami, Miami, FL, USA.
  • Lisa Metsch, PhD. Columbia University, New York, NY, USA.
  • Adaora Adimora, MD, MPH. University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA.
  • Ruth Greenblatt, MD. University of California at San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.
  • Phyllis Tien, MSc, MD. University of California at San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.
  • Bradley Aouizerat, MS, PhD. New York University, NY, USA.
  • Stephen Gange, PhD. Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA.
  • Elizabeth Golub, PhD. Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA.
  • Joel Milam, PhD. University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
• Funding Source
  • U01-AI-103401. National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA.
  • U01-AI-103408. National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA.
  • U01-AI-035004. National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA.
  • U01-AI-031834. National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA.
  • U01-AI-034993. National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA.
  • U01-AI-034994. National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA.
  • U01-AI-103397. National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA.
  • U01-AI-103390. National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA.
  • U01-AI-034989. National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA.
  • U01-AI-042590. National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA.
  • U01-HD-032632. National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA.