Drivers of Sexual Inactivity Among Women Living with HIV and AIDS: Findings of the GENIH Study in São Paulo, Brazil

Health-related quality of life in reproductive-age women on antiretroviral therapy: a cross sectional study in Ethiopia

OBJECTIVES

While numerous studies have explored the impact of gender on Health-Related Quality of Life (HRQOL), there is a lack of evidence specifically among reproductive-age women undergoing Antiretroviral Therapy (ART). Therefore, this study aims to investigate HRQOL and its associated factors among reproductive-age women receiving ART at Hiwot Fana Comprehensive Specialized Hospital in Eastern Ethiopia.

METHODS

A cross-sectional study included 418 women of ART. The World Health Organization quality of Life Questionnaire (WHOQOL-HIV BREF) was used to assess HRQOL. Binary logistic regression was used to determine the factors that could predict HRQOL.

RESULTS

The study found that the median age of the participants was 37 years, and the overall percentage of women with good HRQOL was 40.7%. Women who stayed on ART for more than 6 years had higher odds of overall good HRQOL (AOR 6.73, 95% CI 3.31-13.71) compared to those with a duration of 6 years or less. Besides, women having no child (AOR 25.03, 95% CI 4.93-127.06), one child (AOR 18.60, 95% CI 3.95-87.65), two children (AOR 12.89, 95% CI 3.66-45.37) and three children (AOR 3.77, 95% CI 1.06-13.34) had higher odds of overall good HRQOL compared to those with four/more children.

CONCLUSIONS

The study found that the majority of women on ART had poor HRQOL. Factors such as longer duration of taking ART, higher CD4+ cell count, disclosure of HIV status, and receiving care from adherence support teams were associated with better quality of life. Thus, strengthening adherence support teams, promoting safe disclosure of HIV status, and providing comprehensive support for HIV-positive women are required to improve their overall HRQOL.

The Frequency and Predictors of Sexual Dysfunction Among People Living with HIV/AIDS

Background

The frequency of sexual dysfunctions reported by HIV/AIDS patients is significantly higher than that of their peers. Sexual dysfunction and its predictors may result in increased viral loads, worsening HIV infection, and infectivity. To mitigate its consequences, appropriate evaluation and intervention are required.

Methods

A cross-sectional study design was conducted among 336 HIV/AIDS-positive individuals at one hospital in southwest Ethiopia. To assess sexual dysfunctions, a tool called the Changes in Sexual Functioning Questionnaire (CSFQ-14) was used. Data analysis was done with SPSS version 20. Bivariate and multivariable logistic regressions were used to identify independent predictor variables, and statistical significance was declared at a p-value of <0.05.

Results

98.53% of the sample completed the questionnaire accordingly. The frequency of SD was 72.0% (95% CI = 67.4-77.0). The frequency of SD was reported to be more prevalent among males (76.8% (95% CI = 70.6-81.6)) than that of females (66.2% (95% CI = 59.5-73.5)). Among the domains of sexual dysfunction, sexual pleasure problems (96.70%, (95% CI: 94.60-98.50)) were the higher figure of SD, and sexual desire problems (82.40%, (95% CI: 78.60-86.60)); were the least prevalent sexual dysfunctions. Predictors of the SD were age, social anxiety, nicotine use, poor sleep quality, and time of resuming ART medication.

Conclusion

The frequency of SD was 72.0%. Predictors of the SD were age, social anxiety, nicotine use, poor sleep quality, and time of resuming ART medication.

Sexual desire in Brazilian women: an integrative review of scientific literature

Abstract Women’s sexual desire is a recurring subject in gynecology and psychotherapy offices where a relevant and frequent complaint is the lack of sexual desire. This study aimed to carry out an integrative review of the scientific literature published between 2008 and 2018, on the Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior, Scientific Eletronic Library Online, Literatura Latino-Americana e do Caribe em Ciências da Saúde platforms on the subject of sexual desire in Brazilian women. Three groups of descriptors were taken into consideration for the searches; the first included “sexual desire” the second, “woman” and the third, “Brazil”. Among the 35 articles selected, data regarding the type of research carried out; the cut-out criterion selected for sample and perspective that were used to comprehend desire were collected. The conclusion is that most articles maintain a biological perspective for understanding desire and point out a gap to be filled by psychology on this matter.

Factors Associated with HIV and Vulnerability Contexts for Women in Brazil

The purpose of this study was to identify factors associated with HIV and vulnerability contexts for women in Porto Alegre, Brazil. The participants were 1326 women recruited by complex sampling design, divided into two groups: 640 women with HIV (WLH) and 686 women who did not have HIV (WNLH). Gross and weighted statistical analyses were performed. Logistic regression models were used to estimate the odds ratio (OR) for 12 variables. The main results demonstrated that WLH had lower income (p < .001) and poorer education (p = .038), and few used condoms during their first sexual intercourse (p < .001). The occurrence of HIV was higher among the black population (p < .001). Sex in exchange for money (p < .001) and sexually transmitted infections (p < .001) were more frequent among WLH than among WNLH. The age of sexual debut and age difference from the partner at first sexual intercourse (FSI) were not associated with the outcome. The high percentage of non-use of condoms during the FSI shows how vulnerable individuals are right at the beginning of their sexual lives. More effective prevention strategies can be developed by nurses in view of the contexts of vulnerability surrounding women.

Translation and validation of the Short HIV Stigma scale in Brazilian Portuguese

BACKGROUND

HIV-related stigma, or the degree to which people living with HIV endorse negative stereotypes associated with HIV, is associated with poor continuum of care outcomes. We translated the 12-item Short HIV Stigma scale and evaluated its psychometric properties in a Brazilian context with regard to construct validity and reliability.

METHODS

The first step included translation, back-translation, evaluation, peer review, and pre-testing of the Short HIV Sigma scale developed by Reinius et al. (Health Qual Life Outcomes 15(1):115, 2017). The second step involved piloting the scale in three convenience samples of adults recruited online through advertisements on different platforms: Grindr (October/2019) and Hornet (February-March/2020), geospatial network apps for sexual encounters for gay, bisexuals and other men who have sex with men, and social media apps (Facebook and WhatsApp, October/2019). The psychometric evaluation included confirmatory factor analysis, differential item functioning using the Multiple-Indicator Multiple-Cause model, and correlations between subscale scores and antiretroviral treatment use and adherence. Reliability was assessed using Cronbach's alpha, and ordinal alpha and omega from the polychoric correlation matrix.

RESULTS

In total, 114, 164, and 1824 participants completed the measure items through Grindr, social media, and Hornet, respectively. We confirmed a 4-factor structure with factors for personalized stigma (3 items), disclosure concerns (3 items), concerns with public attitudes (3 items), and negative self-image (3 items). Small differential item functioning with respect to sample was found for one item ("I feel guilty because I have HIV"), which did not substantively influence estimates of latent factor scores. Grindr and Hornet's participants scored significantly higher than social media participants on all factors except personalized stigma. Higher subscale scores correlated with antiretroviral treatment use among participants from Hornet and with lower treatment adherence in participants from Grindr and Hornet. Reliability as measured by Cronbach's alpha, ordinal alpha and omega were 0.83, 0.88 and 0.93 for the entire scale.

DISCUSSION

The Brazilian Portuguese version of the Short HIV Stigma scale had satisfactory psychometric properties with present results suggesting that scores from different samples may be compared without concern that measurement differences substantively influence results though further studies with greater representation of women and heterosexual men are warranted.

Aspects that influence the self-care of patients living with human immunodeficiency virus

Objective:

to analyze aspects related to the increase or decrease of self-care in patients living with human immunodeficiency virus treated in a specialized outpatient service.

Method:

analytical cross-sectional study with 135 patients aged 18 and over, of both sexes, who are followed up on the service. The independent variables and outcomes were collected from the nursing consultation instrument, whose theoretical reference is the Orem’s Theory. The data were analyzed by parametric approach. Relationships or differences were considered significant if p <0.05. The analysis was done with SPSS v21.0 software.

Results:

most participants were male (56.3%), with a mean age of 42.1 years. Patients who needed to conceal the diagnosis had less self-care (β = -0.72 (-1.38, -0.06), p <0.031). The chance of performing self-care decreased with increasing age (OR = 0.93 (0.89, 0.97), p <0.003). On the other hand, patients with a permanent partner had a higher chance of performing self-care (OR = 3.46 (1.27, 9.46), p <0.015).

Conclusion:

aspects related to the increase or decrease of self-care in patients living with human immunodeficiency virus were evidenced. However, further studies are necessary to emphasize the analytical character of the self-care of these patients.