Elevated rates of intracerebral hemorrhage in individuals from a US clinical care HIV cohort.
OBJECTIVE
To compare rates of intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) in HIV-infected and uninfected individuals in a large clinical care cohort and to assess risk factors associated with ICH.


METHODS
We identified incident ICH in HIV-infected and uninfected control cohorts from the Partners Health Care system using ICD-9-CM codes. We constructed Cox proportional hazards models to estimate adjusted hazard ratios for HIV infection and other predictors of ICH.


RESULTS
The incidence rate of ICH was 2.29 per 1,000 person-years in HIV-infected individuals compared with 1.23 per 1,000 person-years in uninfected individuals, with an unadjusted incidence rate ratio of 1.85 (95% confidence interval 1.37-2.47, p < 0.001). In a multivariable model, HIV infection was independently associated with a higher hazard of ICH, although its effect diminished with increasing age. Female sex was associated with a lower hazard of ICH in the uninfected cohort but not in the HIV cohort. CD4 count <200 × 10(6) cells/L and anticoagulant use were predictive of ICH.


CONCLUSIONS
HIV infection conferred an increased adjusted hazard of ICH, which was more pronounced in young patients and in women.