Category Archives: Mental Health
The syndemic illness of HIV and trauma: Implications for a trauma-informed model of care
BACKGROUND: People living with HIV infection are disproportionately burdened by trauma and the resultant negative health consequences, making the combination of HIV infection and trauma a syndemic illness. Despite the...
Substance abuse treatment in persons with HIV/AIDS: Challenges in managing triple diagnosis
Clinical management of HIV must account for the “triple diagnosis” of HIV, psychiatric diagnosis, and substance use disorders and requires integrated treatment services that focus beyond just mitigation of substance...
Perinatal depression in HIV-infected African women: A systematic review
OBJECTIVE: To systematically review the literature on prevalence and incidence of perinatal depression in human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected African women. DATA SOURCES: We searched 17 databases, including PubMed, PsycINFO, Cochrane,...
Targeting the SAVA (Substance Abuse, Violence, and AIDS) syndemic among women and girls: A global review of epidemiology and integrated interventions
OBJECTIVES: Multiple pathways link gender-based violence (GBV) to HIV and other sexually transmitted infections among women and girls who use or inject drugs. The aim of this article is to...
Improving mental health among people living with HIV: A review of intervention trials in low- and middle-income countries
People living with HIV (PLWH) experience greater psychological distress than the general population. Evidence from high-incomes countries suggests that psychological interventions for PLWH can improve mental health symptoms, quality of...
Efavirenz-based regimens in antiretroviral-naive HIV-infected patients: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials
Efavirenz, a non-nucleoside reverse-transcriptase inhibitor (NNRTI) is one of the most commonly prescribed antiretroviral drugs. The present article provides a systematic overview and meta-analysis of clinical trials comparing efavirenz and...
Comparative safety and neuropsychiatric adverse events associated with efavirenz use in first-line antiretroviral therapy: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized trials
INTRODUCTION: Efavirenz (EFV) is widely used for the treatment of antiretroviral-naive HIV-positive individuals, but there are concerns about the risk of adverse neuropsychiatric events. We systematically reviewed the safety of...
Depression and adherence to antiretroviral therapy in low-, middle- and high-income countries: A systematic review and meta-analysis
We investigated the associations between depressive symptoms and adherence to antiretroviral therapy (ART) among people living with HIV (PLHIV). We searched the PubMed, EMBASE and Cochrane CENTRAL databases for studies...
Validity of cognitive screens for HIV-associated neurocognitive disorder: A systematic review and an informed screen selection guide.
Various screening tools have been proposed to identify HIV-Associated Neurocognitive Disorder (HAND). However, there has been no systematic review of their strengths and weaknesses in detecting HAND when compared to...
Cognitive-behavioural interventions for mood and anxiety disorders in HIV: A systematic review
BACKGROUND: Mood and anxiety disorders are highly prevalent and comorbid with HIV/AIDS. However, there is a paucity of research on the effectiveness of cognitive-behavioural interventions (CBI) for common mental disorders...
