Complete Enumeration of HIV Patients Visiting Hospitals in Korea Based on the Health Insurance Review and Assessment Service Database

Abstract

Background: Hospital use patterns of patients with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) in Korea were investigated in this study. The prevalence of HIV infections in Korea is very low. Therefore, we decided to perform a complete enumeration on the medical utilization of HIV patients using a nationwide claims database. Methods: Using the nationwide Health Insurance Review and Assessment (HIRA) service claims database, all new patients with HIV infection from 2013 to 2018 were included. Current inpatient, outpatient, and emergency service use were investigated. The number of invasive procedures, interventions, and operations performed on HIV patients; death rate; and prevalence of colon polyp were also investigated. Results: The number of patients visiting outpatient departments increased by 44% from 2013 to 2018. The most frequently visited department was internal medicine, followed by emergency medicine. Dental procedures were the most common procedures undertaken in patients with HIV after intravenous line insertion. Colon polyp estimated based on diagnostic codes was not more frequent in patients with HIV than in the general population. Interpretation: The results of this study show the status of hospital visits by patients with HIV in Korea and provide basic data upon which policy decisions can be based. Funding Statement: Korea University Grant. Declaration of Interests: The authors have no potential conflicts of interest to disclose. Ethics Approval Statement: This study was approved by the Institutional Review Board of the Korea University Guro Hospital. Informed consent was waived because of the retrospective nature of the study and the analysis used anonymous clinical data [K2019-1979-001].