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March 17, 2026The Brazilian Journal of Infectious Diseases0 citationsOpen Access

Epidemiological Profile of Deaths in Patients Living With Hiv/AIds in a Referral Hospital in the Year 2023

RTR. TeixeiraInstituto de Infectologia Emílio Ribas LBLuciana Marques Sansão BorgesInstituto de Infectologia Emílio Ribas BMBernardo MaiaInstituto de Infectologia Emílio Ribas

Key Points

This research aims to describe the epidemiological profile of deaths in patients living with HIV/AIDS in a referral hospital in 2023.
Analyzed 140 deaths with a focus on HIV/AIDS patients.
Evaluated variables including demographics, CD4 counts, viral loads, and adherence to ART.
Conducted a mortality review based on death certificates.
Grouped findings by recent and pre-existing HIV diagnoses.
71.4% of deaths were among patients living with HIV/AIDS, with a mean age of 47 years.
Sepsis was the leading cause of death in 75% of cases, particularly among newly diagnosed patients.
Tuberculosis, cytomegalovirus disease, and respiratory infections were common comorbidities.
Only 44.7% of pre-existing HIV patients had undetectable viral loads.

Abstract

To describe the epidemiological profile of patients living with HIV/AIDS (PLHIV) who progressed to death in a referral hospital for infectious diseases, in the year 2023, according to the mortality review committee’s analysis. Variables such as sex, age, time of HIV infection, last CD4 T-lymphocyte values and HIV viral load, adherence to antiretroviral therapy (ART), site of outpatient follow-up, and the main pathologies recorded on the Death Certificate were evaluated. Of the 140 deaths that occurred at the institution in 2023, 100 patients (71.4%) lived with HIV/AIDS, most being male (66%) and with a mean age of 47 years. Regarding HIV infection, 24% of deaths were of patients diagnosed less than 30 days before hospitalization, while 76% had a previous diagnosis, with 51.4% lacking regular adherence to ART. Among patients with recent HIV diagnosis (n = 24), mean age was 38.9 years, 75% were male, and the mean CD4 T-lymphocyte count was 78 cells/mm³. Sepsis/septic shock and its complications were the immediate cause of death in 75% of these cases, with respiratory infections accounting for 50% of etiologies. The most prevalent pathologies in newly diagnosed advanced AIDS included tuberculosis (29%), cytomegalovirus disease (20.8%), pneumocystosis (16.6%), Kaposi’s sarcoma (12.5%), cryptococcosis of the central nervous system (12.5%), and toxoplasma meningoencephalitis (8.3%). In patients with pre-existing HIV diagnosis (n = 76), mean age was 49.5 years, 60.5% were male, and the mean CD4 T-lymphocyte count was 183 cells/mm³. Only 44.7% had undetectable viral load (< 50 copies). The main death diagnoses were bacterial infections and their complications (25%), followed by Mycobacterium tuberculosis diseases (22.3%) and neoplasms (18.4%). As for the place of treatment, 30.2% were followed up at the referral hospital’s outpatient clinic and 69.8% in external services. The analysis of deaths in PLHIV underscores the ongoing importance of studying these events as a crucial part of patient care and the care continuum. The data show that a large proportion of deaths still occur in young patients, newly diagnosed with advanced AIDS or with poor adherence to treatment.

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