Abstract
Background: Depressive and anxious symptoms are more regularly seen in HIV-infected people than in the general population. This investigation planned to evaluate the magnitude and factors related to depressive and anxiety symptoms among HIV patients in South Ethiopia, 2018. Methods: This was an institution-based cross-sectional study directed among 363 HIV-infected individuals who had a customary visit at Hawassa University Comprehensive Specialized Hospital and Yirgalem Hospital, Ethiopia, who were incorporated into the study through systematic sampling techniques. The hospital anxiety and depression scale (HADS) was utilized to take a look at anxious and depressive symptoms. Results: The mean age of the respondents was 37.66 years (SD ±10.03). The prevalence of depression and anxiety were 32.0% and 34.4%, respectively. Patients who were living alone [AOR = 1.94, (95% CI: 1.06, 3.56)], had poor social support [AOR = 5.57, (95% CI: 1.20, 10.84)] or had HIV-related perceived stigma [AOR = 2.35, (95% CI: 1.44, 3.84)] were more likely to have depression as compared to their counterparts. Those with a previous history of mental illness [AOR = 3.36, (95% CI: 1.31, 8.61)] and poor social support [AOR = 6.67, (95% CI: 1.47, 10.33)] were more likely to have anxiety symptoms. Conclusion: The prevalence of anxiety and depression in the current study was high. Concerned health departments of the country should create guidelines to screen and treat depression and anxiety among HIV patients. Further research on hazard factors of depression and anxiety ought to be examined to strengthen and expand these findings.
Highlights
Depressive and anxious symptoms are more regularly seen in HIVinfected people than in the general population
Perceived Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-related stigma, living alone and poor social support had a significant association with depressive symptoms
Having a previous history of psychiatric illness and poor social support had a significant association with anxiety symptoms
Summary
Depressive and anxious symptoms are more regularly seen in HIVinfected people than in the general population. This investigation planned to evaluate the magnitude and factors related to depressive and anxiety symptoms among HIV patients in South Ethiopia, 2018. The WHO in 2017 reported that an estimated 36.7 million individuals were living with HIV infection and AIDS, with 2.1 million new cases and 1.1 million deaths as a result of HIV-associated causes [1]. People with HIV/AIDS are prone to mental illness, especially depression and anxiety, because of sexual-related problems, social and perceived stigma, the undesirable effects of antiretroviral treatment and neurophysiological changes [2, 3]. It has been observed to be related with higher HIV viral loads and lower CD4 number, even in the wake of controlling for the impacts of adherence, which predict illness advancement and mortality [6, 10,11,12]
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