Morbidity and mortality related to human immunodeficiency virus in Canadian men and women, 1987-94

Objective: To assess the impact of HIV/AIDS on hospitalization and mortalit y patterns in Canada. Methods: Hospitalizations and deaths due to HIV/AIDS were compared with sel ect causes of morbidity and mortality among men and women across provinces, regions and select cities between 1987-94. Patterns of hospitalization and mortality were characterized by calculating age-specific, standardized rat es, rate ratios and potential years of life lost before 65 years. Results: A total of 28,462 hospitalizations (26,153 in men and 2,309 in wom en) and 8,739 deaths (8,192 in men and 547 in women) were attributed to HIV /AIDS during the study period. Rates of HIV/AIDS hospitalization were highe st for men in Ontario, Quebec and British Columbia, and in Montreal, Toront o and Vancouver; while among women they were highest in Quebec and in Montr eal, Toronto and Vancouver. Mortality rates followed a pattern similar to t he rates found for hospitalization. Conclusions: Our analysis reveals the considerable impact of HIV/AIDS on pa tterns of morbidity and mortality in Canada.