Disparities in Coronavirus Disease 2019 Clinical Outcomes and Vaccination Coverage Among Migrants With Human Immunodeficiency Virus in the PISCIS Cohort: A Population-Based Propensity Score-Matched Analysis.

Background: Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) disproportionately affects migrants and ethnic minorities, including those with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Comprehensive studies are needed to understand the impact and risk factors.
Methods: Using data from the PISCIS cohort of people with HIV (PWH) in Catalonia, Spain, we investigated COVID-19 outcomes and vaccination coverage. Among 10 640 PWH we compared migrants and non-migrants assessing rates of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) testing, diagnosis, and associated clinical outcomes through propensity score matching and multivariable Cox regression.
Results: The cohort (mean age, 43 years; 83.5% male) included 57.4% (3053) Latin American migrants. Migrants with HIV (MWH) had fewer SARS-CoV-2 tests (67.8% vs 72.1%, P < .0001) but similar COVID-19 diagnoses (29.2% vs 29.4%, P = .847) compared to Spanish natives. Migrants had lower complete vaccination (78.9% vs 85.1%, P < .0001) and booster doses (63.0% vs 65.5%, P = .027). COVID-19 hospitalizations (8.1% vs 5.1%, P < .0001) and intensive care unit (ICU) admissions (2.9% vs 1.2%, P < .0001) were higher among migrants, with similar hospitalization duration (5.5 vs 4.0 days, P = .098) and mortality (3 [0.2%] vs 6 [0.4%], P = .510). Age ≥40 years, CD4 counts <200 cells/μL, ≥2 comorbidities, and incomplete/nonreception of the SARS-CoV-2 vaccine increased the risk of severe COVID-19 among migrants.
Conclusions: MWH had lower rates of SARS-CoV-2 testing and vaccination coverage, although the rates of COVID-19 diagnosis were similar between migrants and non-migrants. Rates of COVID-19-associated hospitalizations and ICU admissions were higher among migrants in comparison with non-migrants, with similar hospitalization duration and mortality. These findings can inform policies to address disparities in future pandemic responses for MWH.
Competing Interests: Potential conflicts of interest. D. K. N. received consultation fees from OPIS outside the submitted work. J. M. M. received consulting honoraria and/or research grants from Angelini, Contrafect, Genentech, Gilead Sciences, Jansen, Lysovant, Medtronic, MSD, Novartis, Pfizer, and ViiV Healthcare, outside the submitted work. P. D. reported that his institution received grants from Gilead Sciences, Janssen-Cilag, and ViiV Healthcare; and he personally received honoraria from Gilead Sciences, Janssen-Cilag, MSD, ViiV Healthcare, Roche, and Thera Technologies. A. I. reported that his institution received grants from Gilead Sciences and MSD, and has personally received consultation fees from Gilead Sciences, ViiV Healthcare, and Theratechnologies; honoraria for lectures and presentations from Gilead Sciences, MSD, Jansen, and ViiV Healthcare; and travel support for attending meetings from Gilead Sciences, Jansen, and ViiV Healthcare. J. M. L. has received honoraria from Gilead Sciences, Janssen-Cilag, and ViiV Healthcare, all outside of the present work. J. P. has received conference grants or speaker’s fees from ViiV Healthcare and Gilead. All other authors report no potential conflicts.
(© The Author(s) 2024. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of Infectious Diseases Society of America.)