Intimate Partner Violence and Engagement in the HIV Care Continuum among Women in Sub-Saharan Africa: A Prospective Cohort Study.

ABSTRACT: Research suggests that women's experience of intimate partner violence (IPV) is associated with poor engagement in HIV care and treatment. However, most studies have been cross-sectional and conducted in North America. We examined the association between physical IPV and HIV care outcomes in a prospective cohort study of women living with HIV (WLHIV) in Malawi, South Africa, Uganda, and Zimbabwe. At enrollment, 15% of the 351 participants self-reported physical IPV. IPV experience was not associated with time to first engagement in HIV care or the proportion virally suppressed after 6 months on ART. Women reporting physical IPV were less likely to initiate ART within 6 months of becoming eligible (adjusted RR 0.74, 95% CI 0.53-1.03). IPV screening is critical to identify survivors and link

SUBMITTER: Roberts ST 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10032576 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature