The researchers examined data from the US Nationwide Inpatient Sample between 2000 and 2009. Here are six trends in spine surgery for HIV patients based on their research:
1. There were 5,070 spinal fusions for HIV-positive patients in the United States from 2000 to 2009.
2. The number of HIV-positive patients undergoing spinal fusions increased three-fold.
3. HIV-positive patients have significantly higher respiratory complication rates — 6.2 percent compared with 2.3 percent in non-HIV patients.
4. The wound complication rate for HIV-positive patients is 2.7 percent versus 1.7 percent in non-HIV patients.
5. In-hospital complication rates are also higher for HIV-positive patients, at 12.2 percent, compared with 9.5 percent for non-HIV patients.
6. In-hospital mortality rate was 1.6 percent for HIV-positive patients; significantly higher than the 0.3 percent of non-HIV patients. After controlling for other factors, the in-hospital mortality rate was 3.53 times higher for the HIV-positive patients.
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