A stepped-wedge randomised trial on the impact of early ART initiation on HIV-patients' economic outcomes in Eswatini

The effect of universal testing and treatment for HIV on health-related quality of life - An analysis of data from the HPTN 071 (PopART) cluster randomised trial

Background

HIV treatment has clear Health-Related Quality-of-Life (HRQoL) benefits. However, little is known about how Universal Testing and Treatment (UTT) for HIV affects HRQoL. This study aimed to examine the effect of a combination prevention intervention, including UTT, on HRQoL among People Living with HIV (PLHIV).

Methods

Data were from HPTN 071 (PopART), a three-arm cluster randomised controlled trial in 21 communities in Zambia and South Africa (2013-2018). Arm A received the full UTT intervention of door-to-door HIV testing plus access to antiretroviral therapy (ART) regardless of CD4 count, Arm B received the intervention but followed national treatment guidelines (universal ART from 2016), and Arm C received standard care. The intervention effect was measured in a cohort of randomly selected adults, over 36 months. HRQoL scores, and the prevalence of problems in five HRQoL dimensions (mobility, self-care, performing daily activities, pain/discomfort, anxiety/depression) were assessed among all participants using the EuroQol-5-dimensions-5-levels questionnaire (EQ-5D-5L). We compared HRQoL among PLHIV with laboratory confirmed HIV status between arms, using adjusted two-stage cluster-level analyses.

Results

At baseline, 7,856 PLHIV provided HRQoL data. At 36 months, the mean HRQoL score was 0.892 (95% confidence interval: 0.887-0.898) in Arm A, 0.886 (0.877-0.894) in Arm B and 0.888 (0.884-0.892) in Arm C. There was no evidence of a difference in HRQoL scores between arms (A vs C, adjusted mean difference: 0.003, -0.001-0.006; B vs C: -0.004, -0.014-0.005). The prevalence of problems with pain/discomfort was lower in Arm A than C (adjusted prevalence ratio: 0.37, 0.14-0.97). There was no evidence of differences for other HRQoL dimensions.

Conclusions

The intervention did not change overall HRQoL, suggesting that raising HRQoL among PLHIV might require more than improved testing and treatment. However, PLHIV had fewer problems with pain/discomfort under the full intervention; this benefit of UTT should be maximised during roll-out.

Strategies to improve antiretroviral therapy (ART) initiation and early engagement among men in sub-Saharan Africa: A scoping review of interventions in the era of universal treatment

OBJECTIVES

Men in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) have lower rates of antiretroviral therapy (ART) initiation and higher rates of early default than women. Little is known about effective interventions to improve men's outcomes. We conducted a scoping review of interventions aimed to increase ART initiation and/or early retention among men in SSA since universal treatment policies were implemented.

METHODS

Three databases, HIV conference databases and grey literature were searched for studies published between January 2016 to May 2021 that reported on initiation and/or early retention among men. Eligibility criteria included: participants in SSA, data collected after universal treatment policies were implemented (2016-2021), quantitative data on ART initiation and/or early retention for males, general male population (not exclusively focused on key populations), intervention study (report outcomes for at least one non-standard service delivery strategy), and written in English.

RESULTS

Of the 4351 sources retrieved, 15 (reporting on 16 interventions) met inclusion criteria. Of the 16 interventions, only two (2/16, 13%) exclusively focused on men. Five (5/16, 31%) were randomised control trials (RCT), one (1/16, 6%) was a retrospective cohort study, and 10 (10/16, 63%) did not have comparison groups. Thirteen (13/16, 81%) interventions measured ART initiation and six (6/16, 37%) measured early retention. Outcome definitions and time frames varied greatly, with seven (7/16, 44%) not specifying time frames at all. Five types of interventions were represented: optimising ART services at health facilities, community-based ART services, outreach support (such as reminders and facility escort), counselling and/or peer support, and conditional incentives. Across all intervention types, ART initiation rates ranged from 27% to 97% and early retention from 47% to 95%.

CONCLUSIONS

Despite years of data of men's suboptimal ART outcomes, there is little high-quality evidence on interventions to increase men's ART initiation or early retention in SSA. Additional randomised or quasi-experimental studies are urgently needed.

Out-of-pocket Expenses and Time Spent on Clinic Visits Among HIV Pre-exposure Prophylaxis Users and Other Clinic Attendees in Eswatini

User costs constitute a barrier to the uptake of HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), but their magnitude appears rarely assessed. In this prospective observational study, we assessed self-reported out-of-pocket expenses (OOPE) and time spent on clinic visits during a PrEP demonstration project in Eswatini. At six public primary care clinics, 240 PrEP users and other clinic attendees were interviewed after a clinic visit. Among the 79.2% of clinic attendees reporting any medical OOPE (e.g., expenses for consultations or drugs) and/or non-medical OOPE (e.g., expenses for transport, food, or phone use), the median total OOPE was $1.36 (IQR 0.91-1.96). Non-medical OOPE occurred mostly due to transport expenses. The median travel time for a clinic visit was 1.0 h (IQR 0.67-2.0). The median time spent in the clinic was 2.0 h (IQR 1.15-3.0). The median opportunity cost of a clinic visit was $7.54 (IQR 5.42-11) when valuing time spent on a clinic visit with Eswatini's per-capita gross domestic product. Our findings can guide measures to reduce the user costs of PrEP in Eswatini and other contexts in which oral PrEP is provided through health care facilities.

Intergenerational spillover effects of antiretroviral therapy in sub-Saharan Africa: a scoping review and future directions for research

BACKGROUND

Antiretroviral therapy (ART) may influence individuals who do not receive the intervention but who are connected in some way to the person who does. Relatively little is known, however, about the size and scope of, what we term, spillover effects of ART. We explored intergenerational spillover effects of ART in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) and identified several directions for future research.

METHODS

We conducted a scoping review between March and April 2022. We systematically searched PubMed, PsycINFO, EconLit, OTseeker, AIDSInfo, Web of Science, CINHAL, Google Scholar and African Index Medicus. We analysed the distribution of included studies over time and summarised their findings. We examined the intergenerational impact of ART provision to working-age adults living with HIV on children ('downward' spillover effects) and older adults ('upward' spillover effects). We categorised types of intergenerational spillover effects according to broad themes which emerged from our analysis of included studies.

FINDINGS

We identified 26 studies published between 2005 and 2022 with 16 studies assessing spillover effects from adults to children (downward), and 1 study explicitly assessing spillover effects from working-age adults to older adults (upward). The remaining studies did not fully specify the direction of spillover effects. Most spillover effects of ART to household and family members were beneficial and included improvements in wealth, labour market outcomes, health outcomes and health services utilisation, schooling, and household composition. Both children and older adults benefited from ART availability among adults. Detrimental spillover effects were only reported in three studies and included financial and opportunity costs associated with health services utilisation and food insecurity in the first year after ART.

CONCLUSIONS

ART may lead to substantial spillover effects across generations and sectors in SSA. Further research is needed to capitalise on positive spillover effects while mitigating potential negative spillover effects. The returns to investments in large-scale health interventions such as ART may be underestimated without considering these societal benefits.

The Impact of Immediate Initiation of Antiretroviral Therapy on Patients' Healthcare Expenditures: A Stepped-Wedge Randomized Trial in Eswatini

Immediate initiation of antiretroviral therapy (ART) for all people living with HIV has important health benefits but implications for the economic aspects of patients' lives are still largely unknown. This stepped-wedge cluster-randomized controlled trial aimed to determine the causal impact of immediate ART initiation on patients’ healthcare expenditures in Eswatini. Fourteen healthcare facilities were randomly assigned to transition at one of seven time points from the standard of care (ART eligibility below a CD4 count threshold) to the immediate ART for all intervention (EAAA). 2261 patients living with HIV were interviewed over the study period to capture their past-year out-of-pocket healthcare expenditures. In mixed-effects regression models, we found a 49% decrease (RR 0.51, 95% CI 0.36, 0.72, p < 0.001) in past-year total healthcare expenditures in the EAAA group compared to the standard of care, and a 98% (RR 0.02, 95% CI 0.00, 0.02, p < 0.001) decrease in spending on private and traditional healthcare. Despite a higher frequency of HIV care visits for newly initiated ART patients, immediate ART initiation appears to have lowered patients’ healthcare expenditures because they sought less care from alternative healthcare providers. This study adds an important economic argument to the World Health Organization’s recommendation to abolish CD4-count-based eligibility thresholds for ART.