Although life expectancy is still significantly reduced, young patients recently diagnosed with HIV have an estimated median survival of more than 35 years, Danish researchers report in the January issue of the Annals of Internal Medicine.
"Patients with HIV can have a life expectancy comparable to diabetics," lead investigator Dr. Nicolai Lohse told Reuters Health. "As a result, they will need to ensure they plan properly for the future."
Dr. Lohse of Odense University Hospital and colleagues studied data on 3990 people with HIV being treated in Denmark between 1995 and 2005. Each was matched with up to 99 controls from the general population.
The highest HIV mortality (124 per 1000 person-years) was observed in 1995 to 1996 before the advent of highly active anti-retroviral therapy (HAART). This compared with 4.7 per 1000 person-years in the general population.
Overall, from the age of 25 years, the median survival was 19.9 years in HIV patients and 51.1 years in the general population. However, survival increased to 32.5 years in patients with HIV during the 2000-2005 period. In the subgroup that excluded the 16% of patients with hepatitis C coinfection, the median survival was 38.9 years.
The researchers note that the findings depend on continuous treatment success beyond the 10 years of current experience with HAART.
Nevertheless, concluded Dr. Lohse, "The longer life expectancy calls for physicians to pay attention to prevention and treatment of other lifestyle-related diseases."
Ann Intern Med 2007;146:87-95.
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