Editorial - (2023) Volume 5, Issue 1
The Human Immune Virus (HIV) has posed a significant threat all over the world. According to a report released at the end of 2012, roughly 34 million people worldwide were infected with HIV. Africa continues to be hit worse than any other country in the world by the epidemic. In 2012, Africa accounted for nearly half of all deaths due to AIDS-related illnesses. According to HAPCO, 1.1 million people in the United States are infected with HIV, with noticeable regional differences. AIDS is one of the most devastating epidemics that the world has ever seen. Approximately 33.4 million people worldwide are infected with HIV, with roughly two-thirds of them residing in Sub-Saharan Africa. Antiretroviral therapy (ART) has been found to postpone the onset of AIDS, resulting in a stronger and longer-lasting virologic and immunologic response, as well as a better prognosis. There has been a dramatic increase in the number of HIV/AIDS patients taking antiretroviral treatment in Sub-Saharan Africa, from just a few years ago to now100,000 people in 2003 to 3.9 million in 2009, accounting for nearly 40% of those in need of treatment.
The Human Immune Virus (HIV) has posed a significant threat all over the world. According to a report released at the end of 2012, roughly 34 million people worldwide were infected with HIV. Africa continues to be hit worse than any other country in the world by the epidemic. In 2012, Africa accounted for nearly half of all deaths due to AIDS-related illnesses. According to HAPCO, 1.1 million people in the United States are infected with HIV, with noticeable regional differences. AIDS is one of the most devastating epidemics that the world has ever seen. Approximately 33.4 million people worldwide are infected with HIV, with roughly two-thirds of them residing in Sub-Saharan Africa. Antiretroviral therapy (ART) has been found to postpone the onset of AIDS, resulting in a stronger and longer-lasting virologic and immunologic response, as well as a better prognosis. There has been a dramatic increase in the number of HIV/AIDS patients taking antiretroviral treatment in Sub-Saharan Africa, from just a few years ago to now100,000 people in 2003 to 3.9 million in 2009, accounting for nearly 40% of those in need of treatment.
Botswana and Rwanda became the first nations in Sub-Saharan Africa to attain universal access (treatment coverage of 80% or more of patients in need) by the end of 2009, while Ethiopia, Zambia, Namibia, and Senegal are getting closer to the same goal, having covered 50–80% of patients in need. Because access to ART is critical, it is also critical to ensure that patients follow the approved treatment plan. In this context, adherence is defined as the "degree to which a client's conduct corresponds to the recommended health-care regimen as agreed upon through a joint decision-making process between the client and the health-care practitioner." As a result, successful ART provision necessitates not just medical attention but also long-term social and psychological support, as well as promoting and monitoring adherence. Antiretroviral therapy (ART) used properly has improved the health of many HIV-positive people who might otherwise have died. Notably, any treatment's success is contingent on continued high levels of adherence to ART. However, ART treatments are frequently ineffective.
Patients with less than 80% adherence require more adherence support. Knowledge of the effect of antiretroviral therapy on viral load is a better predictor of adherence than the patient's educational level. Several psychosocial factors influence adherence, either directly or indirectly. These social and psychological elements can lead to noncompliance, which can have major consequences for both the individual and society. If there is a lack of adherence, there is a greater chance of developing drug resistance, necessitating the use of a second-line medicine. Second-line treatment for persons living with HIV can be ten times more expensive than first-line treatment. Youth, on the other hand, have been demonstrated to be more prone to non-adherence, which increases their risk of early mortality. Globally, According to statistics, over 6000 young people are infected with HIV every day, making them more than half of those afflicted. As a result of the rising number of young person’s becoming infected, more young people are being enrolled in treatment programmes. Adherence-related behaviours include taking pills at the same time every day. Following food restrictions and skipping dosages due to unpredictable habits continue to be a concern for HIV-positive youth. The socio-cultural context of sickness has grown in importance as a research topic, and it has contributed significantly to our understanding of the socio-cultural elements of illness. We explore the origins of a socio-cultural approach to sickness in this article, and we offer some of the significant findings of socio-cultural research organised by main themes. Long-term negative effects from HIV treatments can be severe. Finally, since the relevant and feasible recommendations have been forwarded to add scientific values to the existing strategies, programmes, services, and practises specific to the current psychosocial factors that influence ART adherence, all concerned government agencies, NGOs, the academic community, and associations working on ART adherence will benefit. This study is based on ART, and the participants in ART profit from it. The study design refers to the form of an investigation whose goal is to reduce the chances of inaccurate causal inferences being drawn from the data. The study used a qualitative approach to describe the psychological and social factors that influence ART adherence at the Alert hospital.
Citation: Neda Zafari. "Adherence to HIV-AIDS Antiretroviral Treatment is influenced by Psychosocial Factors". J HIV AIDS Res, 2021,3(2), 01-01.
Published: 11-Oct-2021, DOI: 10.35248/JHAR.23.05(1).003
Copyright: © 2021 Neda Z. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.
