Association Between Physical Activity and Psychosocial Resilience Among Middle-Aged and Aging Men Living With or Without HIV in the Multicenter AIDS Cohort Study

Abstract

Introduction Increased resilience has been consistently linked to improved mental and physical health outcomes. Because individuals with HIV have a longer life expectancy than ever before, it is imperative to identify mechanisms to promote resilience in this population. Physical activity has significant potential to strengthen resilience and improve overall well-being in individuals with HIV. The goal of this study was to investigate whether increased physical activity is positively associated with increased individual-level psychosocial resilience, and whether this association varied by HIV status. Methods Data for this analysis were obtained from the Multicenter AIDS Cohort Study (MACS), a longitudinal observational cohort study following men living with and without HIV in the United States. Specifically, cross-sectional data collected between October 2016 and March 2017 from 1118 MACS participants enrolled in the Understanding Patterns of Healthy Aging Among Men Who Have Sex With Men sub-study were used. Odds ratios were determined using logistic regression to examine the association of physical activity with psychosocial resilience (measured using the 14-item Resilience Scale). Results Among all MACS participants enrolled in the sub-study, both sufficient physical activity and health-enhancing physical activity were positively associated with high resiliency (odds ratio, 2.20 [95% CI, 1.36-3.56] and odds ratio, 3.72 [95% CI, 2.30-6.03], respectively). Among the participants with HIV, only health-enhancing physical activity was positively associated with high resiliency (odds ratio, 3.07 [95% CI, 1.54-6.14]). Conclusions At the level of individual patient care, physical activity has significant potential to improve health outcomes and strengthen resilience in individuals living with HIV.