The burden of chronic diseases and cost-of-care in subjects with HIV infection in a Health District of Northern Italy over a 12-year period compared to that of the general population

BACKGROUND: The increase in life expectancy of HIV-infected patients has driven increased costs due to life-long HIV treatment and concurrent age-related comorbidities. This population-based study aimed to investigate the burden of chronic diseases and health costs for HIV(+) subjects compared to the general population living in Brescia Local health Agency (LHA) over a 12-year period. METHODS: LHA database recorded diagnoses, deaths, drug prescriptions and health resource utilization for all residents during 2003–2014. We estimated HIV prevalence and incidence, HIV-related mortality as well as prevalence of chronic diseases in HIV(+) subjects. Observed/expected ratio of chronic diseases was calculated by indirect standardization with the general population as reference. Direct cost of HIV care and determinants were estimates across the period. RESULTS: HIV prevalence increased from 220 to 307 per 100 000 person-years while incidence decreased from 16.1 to 10.8 per 100 000 person-years from 2003 to 2014. Prevalence of most comorbidities increased over time but it reduced significantly (annual mean change − 0.7 %) when adjusting for age and gender. Observed to expected ratio for each chronic disease in HIV(+) subjects decreased over time. Cost of HIV(+) cures increased (+25 %) mainly due to cost for drugs (+50 %) but it stabilized in recent years. CD4(+) cell count at the time of diagnosis was an important predictor of cost for HIV management. CONCLUSIONS: Expenditures for HIV-infection are driven mainly by drugs cost and they have increased overtime. However, our findings suggest that spending on public health for HIV care can improve prognosis of HIV-infected patients, reduce transmission of HIV infection and reduce the global burden of chronic diseases, leading to a reduction of HIV global cost in the medium-long time. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (doi:10.1186/s12889-016-3804-4) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.