[Hospital care for a child living with HIV in Dakar. What is the cost for the family?].

In sub-Saharan Africa, hospitalization is one of the main gateway for testing and care of children living with the HIV. The aim of this study is to estimate the direct costs of the hospitalization of children living with the HIV in Dakar (Senegal). The various expenses were collected daily with the medical file and by interview from the accompanying persons in 30 children. Median age was 9 years (1-17) with a sex ratio of 1.3. Siteen children were orphan and 7 died during the sur- vey. The median duration of the hospitaization was 20 days (3-71). Children older than 5 years had longer hospitalization duration than those under 5 years (p = 0.0001). The average full cost was 175,701 FCFA (268 €), distributed as follow: cost in the hospital 36%, cost of drugs 31%, cost of medical care 20% other non-medical expenses 13%. This survey explores an underdocumented aspect of HIV pediatric care : cost of hospitalization. It also addresses the issue of non-medical expenses resulting from the hospitalization, with regards to the families' income.