Survival longevity of adult AIDS patients under ART: A case study at Felege-Hiwot Referral Hospital, Bahir-Dar, Ethiopia
Abstract
Abstract
Background: Antiretroviral Treatment (ART), although not a cure, can stave off ill health for many years and the treatment has improved the survival longevity of HIV patients. In Ethiopia a total of 249,174 HIV-infected adults were on ART in 2011.
Objective: The purpose of this study was to identify factors affecting the length of survival time of AIDS patients on ART.
Methods: A sample of 387 patients was taken from patients’ records at Bahir-Dar Felege-Hiwot Referral Hospital from June 2006 to August 2013. The Kaplan-Meier estimation method and Cox proportional hazard model were employed to describe and analyze the data.
Results: The predictors included baseline CD4 count >200cell/μl, being TB-negative, total lymphocyte count ≥1200 cell/mm3 and baseline weight ≥45kg, no regimen change, uninterrupted adherence to treatment, WHO stage I, working functional status and being anemia-negative contributed to extended survival at 5% level. Also females and patients with no risk behaviors lived longer.
Conclusion: Females exhibited longer survival than men. Patients with poor health indicators like being TB-positive, being anemia-positive, having low CD4 count, being in WHO stage IV and poor adherence to treatment contributed to lower survival. The survival of patients was almost the same within groups classified by age, marital status, and knowledge of ART, residence, VCT (voluntary counseling and testing), educational level, regimen type, weight, WBC count, condom use, regimen change, partner's HIV status, and risk factor behavior. In other words, the survival duration had no association with all of these variables. [Ethiop. J. Health Dev. 2014;28(2):105-115]