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. 2020 Dec;32(12):1610-1616.
doi: 10.1080/09540121.2020.1772954. Epub 2020 May 29.

Syndemic conditions and medication adherence in older men living with HIV who have sex with men

R Zepf  1   2 , M Greene  3 , N A Hessol  1   4 , M O Johnson  5 , G M Santos  2   6 , M D John  1 , C Dawson-Rose  2
Affiliations

Syndemic conditions and medication adherence in older men living with HIV who have sex with men

R Zepf et al. AIDS Care. 2020 Dec.

Abstract

For people living with HIV, lack of adherence to antiretroviral therapy (ART) is a serious problem and frequently results in HIV disease progression. Reasons for non-adherence include concomitant psychosocial health conditions - also known as syndemic conditions - such symptoms of depression or posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), past physical or sexual abuse, intimate partner violence (IPV), stimulant use, and binge drinking. The aim of this study was to investigate the association between syndemic conditions and medication adherence. The sample included 281 older men living with HIV who have sex with men (MSM). The study period was December 2012-July 2016. We observed the following syndemic conditions significantly decreased medication adherence: symptoms of depression (p = .008), PTSD (p = .002), and stimulant use (p < .0001). Past physical or sexual abuse, IPV, and binge drinking were not significantly associated with decreased medication adherence. The findings suggest that syndemic conditions may impact medication adherence in older MSM living with HIV.

Keywords: HIV; medication adherence; men who have sex with men; older; syndemic conditions.

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Conflict of interest statement

Disclosure statement

Conflict of interest Dr Malcolm D. John is on the speaker’s bureau and advisory boards of Gilead Sciences, Inc.; Merck & Co., Inc.; and ViiV Healthcare. The remaining authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest.

References

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    1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2018b). HIV and gay and bisexual men. https://www.cdc.gov/hiv/group/msm/index.html

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