Retention on antiretroviral therapy during Universal Test and Treat implementation in Zomba district, Malawi: a retrospective cohort study.

ABSTRACT:

Introduction

Since June 2016, the national HIV programme in Malawi has adopted Universal Test and Treat (UTT) guidelines requiring that all persons who test HIV positive will be referred to start antiretroviral therapy (ART). Although there is strong evidence from clinical trials that early initiation of ART leads to reduced morbidity and mortality, the impact of UTT on retention on ART in real-life programmatic settings in Africa is not yet known.

Methods

We conducted a retrospective cohort study in Zomba district, Malawi to compare ART outcomes of patients who initiated ART under 2016 UTT guidelines and those who started ART prior to rollout of UTT (pre-UTT). We analysed data from 32 rural and urban health facilities of various sizes. Cox proportional hazards modelling was

SUBMITTER: Alhaj M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6367572 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature