Trends and determinants of severe morbidity in HIV‐infected patients: the ANRS CO3 Aquitaine Cohort, 2000–2004*

Objective The aim of the study was to characterize the causes, trends and determinants of severe morbidity in a large cohort of HIV-infected patients between 2000 and 2004. Method Severe morbid events were defined as medical events associated with hospitalization or death. Epidemiological and biological data were recorded at the time of the morbid event. Trends were estimated using Poisson regression. Results Among 3863 individuals followed between 2000 and 2004, 1186 experienced one or more severe events, resulting in 1854 hospitalizations or deaths. The severe events recorded included bacterial infections (21%), AIDS events (20%), psychiatric events (10%), cardiovascular events (9%), digestive events including cirrhosis (7%), viral infections (6%) and non-AIDS cancers (5%). Between 2000 and 2004, the incidence rate of AIDS events decreased from 60 to 20 per 1000 person-years, that of bacterial infections decreased from 45 to 24 per 1000 person-years, and that of psychiatric events decreased from 26 to 14 per 1000 person-years (all P<0.01), whereas the incidences of cardiovascular events and of non-AIDS cancers remained stable at 14 and 10 per 1000 person-years, on average, respectively. Conclusion Severe morbidity has shifted from AIDS-related to non-AIDS-related events during the course of HIV infection in developed countries. Limiting endpoints to AIDS events and death is insufficient to describe HIV disease progression in the era of combination antiretroviral therapy.