Abstract
Anxiety and depression continue to be significant comorbidities for people with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of anxiety and depression disorder among HIV patients at Conakry, Guinea. In this cross-sectional study, we described socio-demographic, clinical and psychosocial data related to anxiety and depression in 160 HIV patients of the University Teaching Hospital, Conakry, Guinea. The Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) was used for measuring depression and anxiety in the prior month. The HADS score of ⩾8 was used to identify possible cases of depression and anxiety. Multivariate logistic regression analyses were performed to identify factors associated with symptoms of anxiety and depression. The prevalence of comorbid depression and anxiety among HIV patients was 8.1% and the prevalence of anxiety and depressive symptoms among HIV-infected patients was 13.8% and 16.9%, respectively. Multivariate analysis showed that individuals having BMI ⩽ 18 (AOR = 3.62, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.37-9.57) and who did not receive antiretroviral treatment (AOR = 18.93, 95% CI 1.88-188.81) were significantly more likely to have depressive symptoms. Similarly, having age <40 years (AOR = 2.81, 95% CI 1.04-7.58) was also significantly associated with anxiety. Prevalence of symptoms of anxiety and depression was high in these HIV patients. This suggests a need for training on the screening and management of anxiety and depression among HIV patients.
Highlights
Depression is responsible for more ‘years lost’ to disability than any other condition
The study population consisted of all adult human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) patients who were on follow-up at the infectious diseases department at University Hospital, including both ambulatory and hospitalised patients
Participants were mostly living with a spouse (83/160; 51.9%), were private or governmental employees (122/160; 76.3%) and had some education (104/160; 65.0%)
Summary
Depression is responsible for more ‘years lost’ to disability than any other condition. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), 350 million suffer from depression [1]. One review found that patients tended to experience depression or anxiety as a consequence of being diagnosed with a chronic disease [2]. Depression is a common mental disorder that presents with depressed mood, decreased energy, disturbed sleep or appetite, loss of interest or pleasure, feelings of guilt or low self-worth, and poor concentration [3]. Subjective, non-specific feeling of uneasiness, fears, tension, apprehension and a sense of impending doom, irrational avoidance of objects or situations and anxiety attack [4]. Anxiety was associated with gender, age and chronic diseases [5, 6]
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