GENDER AND SURVIVAL AFTER AIDS IN RIO-DE-JANEIRO, BRAZIL

The relation between gender and survival after a diagnosis of AIDS was studied in a cohort of patients with HIV infection in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. During the study period, 124 of 617 patients (20%) developed AIDS. Of this group, 91 patients were men and 33 were women. There wer e no gender related differences regarding the access to antiretroviral therapy or to prophylaxis for Pneumocystis carinii pneumonia. Surviva l was shorter among women (hazard ratio [HR] = 4.43; p < .001) after a djustment for age and AIDS-defining condition. Adjusting for CD4(+) an d CD8(+) counts reduced the difference between genders (HR = 3.33,p = .017). These results suggest that survival after an AIDS diagnosis may be shorter among women than men in Brazil. Further studies are needed to determine the factors that may be negatively influencing the progn osis of women with AIDS in Brazil.