Geographic differences in hemophilia-associated AIDS incidence in Pennsylvania. By the Pennsylvania AIDS Surveillance Study Group

A 1986 survey of seven hemophilia treatment centers in Pennsylvania (PA) has revealed that 22 hemophiliacs residing in PA have developed the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS), representing 9.2% of the total 238 United States hemophiliac AIDS cases. These 22 included ten (45.5%) from western PA (W-PA), eleven (50.0%) from central PA (C-PA), and one (0.5%) from eastern PA (E-PA). The HIV antibody prevalence for these three geographic groups is comparable, with 84 of 178 (47.2%) of hemophiliacs in W-PA seropositive, 102 of 182 (56.0%) in C-PA seropositive, and 105 of 177 (59.3%) in E-PA seropositive. Blood product usage for these three areas is comparable: 47.8 X 10(3) (W-PA) v 43.9 (C-PA) v 53.3 (E-PA) units factor VIII concentrate per patient per year; 36.5 v 24.5 v 33.7 for factor IX concentrate; 8.4 v 4.7 v 7.7 for cryoprecipitate; and 1.3 v 2.7 v 1.0 for fresh frozen plasma, respectively. These data demonstrate a geographic variation in hemophilia AIDS incidence in PA, with a tenfold higher incidence in W- PA and C-PA than E-PA, which is unrelated to differences in HIV antibody prevalence, patient blood product usage, or inaccuracies in AIDS case reporting. Because of the greater than or equal to 5 year median latency between HIV infection and development of AIDS, the AIDS incidence will continue to change, but other factors appear to be operative in the development of AIDS in hemophiliacs.