Prevalence and Correlates of depression among the HIV/AIDS patients -A Prospective cross sectional study in South India

Dr. Neeli Uma Jyothi¹, Shaik Faizan Ali², Mounica Bollu²*, Dokku Sri Chaitanya², Nalluri Kranthi Koushik², Nallani Venkata ramarao^2
1Associate Professor, Department of Psychiatry, Government General Hospital, Guntur.
²Department of Pharmacy Practice, Chalapathi Institute of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Lam.

A B S T R A C T
Depressive disorders are one of the common comorbidity of HIV .it is more prevalent, disabling, and often chronic, with a high economic burden on the patient as well as the society. Although depression is common, determining its prevalence across studies and within different segments of the HIV population is not easy, given the variety of methodological issues that warrant consideration. This study aimed to estimates the prevalence of depressive disorders and its correlates. To determine the prevalence of depression among the HIV patients attending a private clinic in Guntur and to explore the possible role of patient-specific clinical and social issues as intermediary factors in the relationship between HIV/ AIDS and depression. Over a six -month period, all eligible and consenting patients attending a clinic suffering from  HIV/AIDS, were invited to participate in the study. They were interviewed using the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9), an instrument validated for the detection of depression in primary care settings. socio-demographic data was obtained from all the participating patients. Depression prevalence rates were calculated and the association between depression and age, gender, antiretroviral treatment, living arrangement, marital status and major stressors explored. Fourty one patients participated in the study and 90.24% (n=37) of them were depressed. Significant differences in the rates of depression were found with respect to the sociodemographic or clinical factors explored. The relatively high prevalence of depression among the patients highlights the need for depression screening in all the HIV patients.
Keywords: HIV/AIDS, Patients, Depression