Influence of geographic origin on AIDS and serious non-AIDS morbidity/mortality during cART among heterosexual HIV-infected men and women in France

BACKGROUND: The influence of geographic origin on the risk of severe illness and death on cART has not been explored in European countries. METHOD: We studied antiretroviral-naïve heterosexual HIV-1-infected individuals enrolled in the FHDH-ANRS CO4 cohort in France who started cART between 2006 and 2011. Individuals originating from France (French natives), sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) and non-French West-Indies (NFW) were studied until 2012. Crude and adjusted rate ratios (aRR) of severe morbid events/deaths (AIDS-related and non-AIDS-related) were calculated using Poisson regression models stratified by sex, comparing each group of migrants to French natives. RESULTS: Among 2334 eligible men, 1379 (59.1%) originated from France, 838 (35.9%) from SSA and 117 (5.0%) from NFW. SSA male migrants had a higher aRR for non-AIDS infections, particularly bacterial infections (aRR 1.56 (95% CI 1.07–2.29), p = 0.0477), than French natives. Among 2596 eligible women, 1347 (51.9%) originated from France, 1131 (43.6%) from SSA, and 118 (4.5%) from NFW. SSA and NFW female migrants had a higher aRR for non-AIDS infections, particularly non-bacterial infections (respectively, 2.04 (1.18–3.53) and 7.87 (2.54–24.4), p = 0.0010), than French natives. We observed no other significant differences related to geographic origin as concerns the aRRs for AIDS-related infections or malignancies, or for other non-AIDS events/deaths such as cardiovascular disease, neurological/psychiatric disorders, non-AIDS malignancies and iatrogenic disorders, in either gender. CONCLUSION: Heterosexual migrants from SSA or NFW living in France have a higher risk of non-AIDS-defining infections than their French native counterparts. Special efforts are needed to prevent infectious diseases among HIV-infected migrants.