"I am alive because of her": factors affecting adherence to combination antiretroviral therapy among people living with HIV in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa.

ABSTRACT:

Background

People living with HIV need to take lifelong, combination antiretroviral therapy (cART), but there have been only limited explorations of how factors affecting adherence can change over the course of an individual's lifetime.

Methods

We carried out a qualitative study of men and women living with HIV in KwaZulu, Natal, South Africa who were prescribed cART and who had periods of higher and lower adherence.

Results

18 individuals participated in open-ended interviews. Using a dynamic theory of adherence, we identified factual, relational, and experiential factors that were associated with adherence and non-adherence to cART. Periods of non-adherence were commonly reported. Participants described relationships and experiences as being important influences on

SUBMITTER: Loveday M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9361592 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature