Survival after AIDS diagnosis in South Carolina, 1982-1992

The results of this study demonstrate that age, ethnicity, and AIDS-defining diagnosis are important predictors of survival time after AIDS diagnosis, and should be considered when planning treatment and services for people with AIDS. Future studies in states with large rural populations will be helpful in further understanding the natural history of the disease in areas outside the nation's major population centers. These could improve on the results of the present study by actively following up all cases to determine mortality status, collecting detailed clinical information on AIDS-defining diagnoses (with dates), collecting information on treatment of HIV infection and associated opportunistic infections, and evaluating service utilization. Monitoring survival trends over time remains an effective tool in evaluating the success of current efforts to provide treatment and services to people with AIDS.