title: Symptom manageability in Swiss HIV-infected patients.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Managing symptoms in daily life is a challenging problem for people living with HIV. As traditional parameters used to identify symptoms needing management do not integrate aspects of daily living with symptoms, we introduced 'perceived symptom manageability' to fill this gap.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  The aim of this study was to quantitatively explore 'perceived symptom manageability' in a sample of 268 persons living with HIV.
  
  
  METHODS
  Secondary analysis of existing cross-sectional data. Social support, gender, age, depressive and anxiety symptoms were bivariately and multivariately analyzed and related to symptom experience and manageability as measured by the HIV Symptom Assessment Scale and the HIV Symptom Manageability Scale.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Least manageable symptoms were hair loss, vomiting and insomnia. Multivariately, age (beta=-.11; p=.024), symptom distress (beta=-.62; p<.001) and total anxiety and depressive symptoms (beta=-.18; p=.003) were statistically significant correlates of symptom manageability.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Although a promising concept to identify symptoms needing management, further research employing primary data is recommended.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Nursing Science, University of Basel, Basel, Switzerland. katharina.fierz@unibas.ch
authors.forename: Katharina
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Fierz
authors.forename: Sandra
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Engberg
authors.forename: Dunja
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Nicca
authors.forename: Kimberly
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Moody
authors.forename: Manuel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Battegay
authors.forename: Rebecca
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Spirig
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000628:therapy*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D013557:Switzerland
keywords: Assessment; HIV; Symptom distress; Symptom experience; Symptom manageability