UCLA

Objective

With antiretroviral therapy, people with HIV (PWH) are developing age-related diseases, including peripheral arterial disease (PAD). This study examined frequency and outcomes of peripheral vascular intervention (PVI) and primary amputation in PWH.

Design

We used the National Inpatient Sample (NIS) database to examine demographics, comorbidities, and temporal trends among PVI and primary amputation admissions by HIV status from 2012 to 2018.

Methods

Inverse probability of treatment weighting was used to calculate adjusted odds of in-hospital death and amputation. Cost of hospitalization and length of stay were compared by HIV status and revascularization approach.

Results

Of the 347 824 hospitalizations for PVI/amputation, 0.6% were PWH, which was stable over time. PWH had more renal and hepatic disease, whereas uninfected individuals had more traditional PAD risk factors. 55.2% of HIV+ admissions were endovascular compared with 49.3% in HIV- admissions, and 28.9% of the HIV+ admissions were elective compared with 42.1% among HIV-. HIV status did not impact amputation following PVI. In-hospital death was similar between groups following PVI or primary amputation. PWH had lower costs of hospitalization and a trend towards shorter hospital stays.

Conclusion

Although PWH are developing more age-related chronic illnesses, the number of PAD-associated procedures has remained flat. Despite being younger with fewer traditional PAD risk factors, PWH had higher rates of unplanned PVI admissions and endovascular revascularization but similar in-hospital outcomes. These findings suggest PWH have different risk factors for PAD and are likely underdiagnosed and undertreated, whereas those who are treated have similar outcomes to the general population.