Abstract
This study aimed to determine the change in mental health (depression and anxiety) among HIV-positive gay and bisexual men (GBM) one year after diagnosis and the disparities in trajectories of mental health between them. The potential factors contributing to the disparities were also investigated. This was a one-year follow-up study focusing on the mental health of newly diagnosed HIV-positive individuals. Participants rated their depression, anxiety, stress, and social support levels at baseline and one year later. Information on the utilization of mental healthcare and the initiation of antiretroviral therapy (ART) after diagnosis was collected at one-year follow-up. A total of 171 and 87 HIV-positive gay and bisexual men, respectively, completed two-time points surveys in this study. The depressive and anxiety symptoms experienced by HIV-positive GBM improvement one year after diagnosis. These improvements tended to be smaller in gay participants. Other factors including mental health care utilization and ART status during the one-year follow-up period, changes in social stress scores and objective social support scores were also associated with the changes in depression and anxiety, and all these factors, except for change in objective support, were found to be statistically different between HIV-positive GBM. Special attention should be given to the mental health of HIV-positive gay men. Promoting HIV-positive gay men to assess to mental health services and ART may be important for these populations to improve mental health. Enhancing social support and reducing stress levels may also be necessary for the vulnerable HIV-positive sexual minority groups.
Highlights
The mental health of HIV-positive individuals is of great concern in public health
There were no significant differences between the 171 HIV-positive gay participants who completed two-time surveys and the 64 who completed only baseline survey, with respect to baseline socio-demographic, clinical, and psychosocial characteristics, except that participants lost to follow-up were more likely to live alone
The depressive and anxiety symptoms experienced by HIV-positive gay and bisexual men (GBM) at diagnosis alleviated one year later
Summary
The mental health of HIV-positive individuals is of great concern in public health. There is evidence that HIV-positive individuals experience much higher mental health burden than the general population, with depression and anxiety being the most commonly reported [1,2]. Previous studies have found that depression and anxiety are associated with poor adherence to antiretroviral therapy (ART) and increased HIV-related mortality [3,4]. It is important to focus on the mental health among individuals living with HIV. Due to the growing prevalence of HIV infection among them [5], the mental health of men who have sex with men (MSM) has become a topic of increasing interest.
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