title: Depression and Engagement in Care Among Newly Diagnosed HIV-Infected Adults in Johannesburg, South Africa.
abstract: Delayed engagement in HIV care threatens the success of HIV treatment programs in sub-Saharan Africa and may be influenced by depression. We examined the relationship between depression prior to HIV diagnosis and engagement in HIV care at a primary care clinic in Johannesburg, South Africa. We screened 1683 patients for depression prior to HIV testing using the Patient Health Questionnaire-9. Among patients who tested positive for HIV we assessed linkage to HIV care, defined as obtaining a CD4 count within 3 months. Among those who linked to care and were eligible for ART, we assessed ART initiation within 3 months. Multivariable Poisson regression with a robust variance estimator was used to assess the association between depression and linkage to care or ART initiation. The prevalence of HIV was 26 % (n = 340). Among HIV-infected participants, the prevalence of depression was 30 %. The proportion of linkage to care was 80 % among depressed patients and 73 % among patients who were not depressed (risk ratio 1.08; 95 % confidence interval 0.96, 1.23). Of the participants who linked to care, 81 % initiated ART within 3 months in both depressed and not depressed groups (risk ratio 0.99; 95 % confidence interval 0.86, 1.15). Depression was not associated with engagement in HIV care in this South African primary care setting. Our unexpected findings suggest that some depressed HIV-infected patients might be more likely to engage in care than their counterparts without depression, and highlight the complex relationship between depression and HIV infection. These findings have led us to propose a new framework relating HIV infection, depression, and the population under study.
authors.affiliation: UNC School of Medicine, Pediatric Education Office, 230 MacNider Hall, Campus Box 7593, Chapel Hill, NC, 27599, USA. rushina.cholera@unchealth.unc.edu.
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Cholera
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology, University of North Carolina Gillings School of Global Public Health, Chapel Hill, NC, USA.
authors.forename: B W
authors.initials: BW
authors.lastname: Pence
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, UNC School of Medicine, Chapel Hill, NC, USA.
authors.forename: B N
authors.initials: BN
authors.lastname: Gaynes
authors.affiliation: Witkoppen Health and Welfare Center, Johannesburg, South Africa.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Bassett
authors.affiliation: Witkoppen Health and Welfare Center, Johannesburg, South Africa.
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Qangule
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology, University of North Carolina Gillings School of Global Public Health, Chapel Hill, NC, USA.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Pettifor
authors.affiliation: Collaborative Research Network for Mental Health and Well-being in Rural Communities, University of New England, Armidale, Australia.|Wits Reproductive Health and HIV Institute, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa.
authors.forename: C
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Macphail
authors.affiliation: Department of Epidemiology, University of North Carolina Gillings School of Global Public Health, Chapel Hill, NC, USA.|Department of Medicine, UNC School of Medicine, Chapel Hill, NC, USA.
authors.forename: W C
authors.initials: WC
authors.lastname: Miller
mesh_terms: D015492:AIDS Serodiagnosis / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D019380:Anti-HIV Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D018791:CD4 Lymphocyte Count; D003863:Depression / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008403:Mass Screening / Q000379:methods / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D008875:Middle Aged; D010342:Patient Acceptance of Health Care / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D015995:Prevalence; D011320:Primary Health Care; D012017:Referral and Consultation; D013019:South Africa / Q000453:epidemiology; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D019380:Anti-HIV Agents
keywords: Africa; Depression; Engagement in care; HIV