Abstract
<p><strong>Background.</strong> In order to gauge the impact of the HIV epidemic on psychotic disorders, the magnitude and causal direction of the association between HIV infection and psychosis need to be examined closely.</p><p><strong>Objective.</strong> To determine the HIV seropositivity rate among adult patients presenting with first-episode psychosis (FEP) to Town Hill Hospital in Pietermaritzburg, KwaZulu-Natal.</p><p><strong>Design.</strong> A cross-sectional, point-prevalence study was done over a 6-month period.</p><p><strong>Results.</strong> Of the 63 FEP patients in the study, 48 tested HIV- negative and 15 tested positive, giving a seroprevalence rate of 23.8%.</p><p><strong>Conclusion.</strong> The prevalence of HIV seropositivity is high among patients with FEP.</p>
Highlights
In order to gauge the impact of the HIV epidemic on psychotic disorders, the magnitude and causal direction of the association between HIV infection and psychosis need to be examined closely
The prevalence of HIV seropositivity is high among patients with first-episode psychosis (FEP)
By the end of 2005 there were 5.5 million people living with HIV in South Africa.[2]
Summary
The study population comprised patients with FEP admitted to Town Hill Hospital. Town Hill is the largest psychiatric hospital in KwaZulu-Natal. It is a major referral centre for the surrounding regional and district hospitals. The patients were managed according to the standard guidelines until they were free of psychotic symptoms and ready to give consent. They were approached individually by the researcher, and written consent was obtained. Certain data were collapsed into broader categories to facilitate analysis. All primary psychotic disorders were collapsed into one category, viz. The category ‘other’ included married, widowed and cohabiting individuals
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