Survival rates up for people with HIV
2 July 2008
A study of death rates in people infected with HIV has shown that when patients have access to HAART (highly active antiretroviral therapy) mortality rates are similar to those of the general population for the first five years after infection.
Study leader Kholoud Porter of the MRC Clinical Trials unit in London said:
‘‘People infected sexually with HIV who have access to HAART now appear to experience mortality rates similar to those of the general population in the first five years following infection. Beyond this time death rates rise again the longer a person has been infected.’’
The results of the EU funded CASCADE (Concerted Action on SeroConversion to AIDS and Death in Europe) study are published in JAMA, the Journal of the American Medical Association. The collaboration involved researchers in 15 European countries, including the UK, and in Australia and Canada.
Data from more than 16,500 individuals who contracted HIV between 1981 and 2006 were analysed. It showed that, after the introduction of HAART, overall death rates decreased dramatically and are now 94% lower than pre-1996 levels, before HAART was introduced.
Overall, 2571 deaths were observed in the group, this compares to a prediction of 235 deaths in an uninfected group of the same size. However, the gap between the number of deaths in the infected and uninfected populations narrowed considerably after the introduction of HAART.
By 2004 – 2006, no excess mortality (increased death rate) was observed in the first five years following HIV infection for persons infected sexually.
‘‘Crucially, our study serves to highlight the benefits of testing and early diagnosis of HIV infection as members of our study population with well-estimated dates of HIV seroconversion are, by definition, diagnosed and monitored from an early stage,” Dr Porter added “Our findings may well be optimistic compared with the experience of the wider HIV-infected population.”
Original research paper: Changes in risk of death after HIV seroconversion compared with mortality in the general population is published in JAMA, the Journal of the American Medical Association.
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