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Review
. 2023 Jul 15;10(8):ofad350.
doi: 10.1093/ofid/ofad350. eCollection 2023 Aug.

Global Prevalence of Chronic Pain in Women with HIV: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

Tetiana Povshedna  1   2   3 , Shayda A Swann  3   4   5 , Sofia L A Levy  6 , Amber R Campbell  1   5   7 , Manon Choinière  8 , Madeleine Durand  9 , Colleen Price  10 , Prubjot Gill  11 , Melanie C M Murray  3   4   5   7 , Hélène C F Côté  1   2   3   5
Affiliations
Review

Global Prevalence of Chronic Pain in Women with HIV: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis

Tetiana Povshedna et al. Open Forum Infect Dis. .

Abstract

Chronic pain is common among people with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and detrimental to quality of life and overall health. It is often underdiagnosed, undertreated, and frankly dismissed in women with HIV, despite growing evidence that it is highly prevalent in this population. Thus, we conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to estimate the global prevalence of chronic pain in women with HIV. The full protocol can be found on PROSPERO (identifier CRD42022301145). Of the 2984 references identified in our search, 36 were included in the systematic review and 35 in the meta-analysis. The prevalence of chronic pain was 31.2% (95% confidence interval [CI], 24.6%-38.7%; I2 = 98% [95% CI, 97%-99%]; P < .0001). In this global assessment, we found a high prevalence of chronic pain among women with HIV, underscoring the importance of understanding the etiology of chronic pain, identifying effective treatments, and conducting regular assessments in clinical practice.

Keywords: AIDS; HIV; chronic pain; neuropathy; women.

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Conflict of interest statement

Potential conflicts of interest. All authors: No reported conflicts.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Study selection.
Figure 2.
Figure 2.
Map of countries where studies included in the review took place. The majority of the studies (n = 34) spanned a single site, while only 2 studies spanned multiple sites.
Figure 3.
Figure 3.
Proportion of studies that included data about selected demographic parameters of their study participants. Abbreviations: ART, antiretroviral therapy; HIV, human immunodeficiency virus; TB, tuberculosis.
Figure 4.
Figure 4.
Pooled prevalence of chronic pain in women with human immunodeficiency virus. Cases: number of women with chronic pain in the study. Total: number of women enrolled in the study. Black circles indicate chronic pain prevalence in each study (with 95% confidence interval [CI]); diamond and vertical dashed line indicate the pooled estimate of chronic pain.
Figure 5.
Figure 5.
Subgroup analysis of chronic pain prevalence in women with human immunodeficiency virus based on chronic pain type (peripheral neuropathy vs other). Cases: number of women with chronic pain in the study. Total: number of women enrolled in the study. Black circles indicate chronic pain prevalence in each study (with 95% confidence interval [CI]); gray diamonds indicate pooled prevalence of chronic pain within the subgroups; black diamond and vertical dashed line indicate pooled estimate of chronic pain. #Headache. *Chronic pain. ^Chronic pain and peripheral neuropathy. §Dyspareunia. ǂFibromyalgia/myalgia.
Figure 6.
Figure 6.
Subgroup analysis of chronic pain prevalence in women with human immunodeficiency virus based on country where the study was conducted (low-middle vs high income). Cases: number of women with chronic pain in the study. Total: number of women enrolled in the study. Black circles indicate chronic pain prevalence in each study (with 95% confidence interval [CI]); gray diamonds indicate pooled prevalence of chronic pain within the subgroups; black diamond and a vertical dashed line indicate pooled estimate of chronic pain.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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