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Factors Related to Incomplete Adherence to Antiretroviral Therapy among Adolescents Attending Three HIV Clinics in the Copperbelt, Zambia

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Abstract

Little is known about adherence to antiretroviral therapy (ART) among adolescents in sub-Saharan Africa, where the majority of the world’s HIV-positive adolescents reside. We assessed individual, household, and HIV self-management characteristics associated with a 48-hour treatment gap in the preceding 3 months, and a pharmacy medication possession ratio (MPR) that assessed the number of ART pills dispensed divided by the number of ART pills required in the past 6 months, among 285 Zambians, ages 15–19 years. Factors significantly associated with a 48-hour treatment gap were being male, not everyone at home being aware of the adolescent’s HIV status, and alcohol use in the past month. Factors associated with an MPR < 90% included attending the clinic alone, alcohol use in the past month, and currently not being in school. Findings support programs to strengthen adolescents’ HIV management skills with attention to alcohol use, family engagement, and the challenges adolescents face transitioning into adulthood, especially when they are no longer in school.

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Acknowledgements

We are grateful to the adolescents who participated in this study. We appreciate the support and guidance of the staff at the health facilities where this research was conducted. We also thank Samuel Field of FHI 360 for his statistical advice and Suzanne Fischer for her technical writing and editing skills.

Disclaimer

The contents do not necessarily reflect the views of USAID or the United States government.

Funding

This work was made possible by the generous support of the American people through the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). Financial assistance was provided by USAID to FHI 360 under the terms of the Preventive Technologies Agreement No. GHO-A-00-09-00016-00. This publication was made possible with help from the Johns Hopkins University Center for AIDS Research, an NIH funded program (P30AI094189), which is supported by the following NIH Co-Funding and Participating Institutes and Centers: NIAID, NCI, NICHD, NHLBI, NIDA, NIMH, NIA, FIC, NIGMS, NIDDK, and OAR. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the NIH.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of International Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, 615 N. Wolfe Street E5032, Baltimore, MD, 21205, USA

    Julie A. Denison

  2. Reproductive, Maternal, Newborn, Child Health Division, FHI 360, Durham, NC, USA

    Catherine Packer & Donna R. McCarraher

  3. Contraceptive Technology Innovation Department, FHI 360, Durham, NC, USA

    Randy M. Stalter

  4. FHI 360, Ndola, Zambia

    Harry Banda

  5. Health Services Research, FHI 360, Durham, NC, USA

    Sarah Mercer

  6. FHI 360, Lusaka, Zambia

    Namakau Nyambe & Patrick Katayamoyo

  7. Arthur Davison Children’s Hospital, Ndola, Zambia

    Jonathan K. Mwansa

Authors
  1. Julie A. Denison
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  2. Catherine Packer
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  3. Randy M. Stalter
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  4. Harry Banda
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  5. Sarah Mercer
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  6. Namakau Nyambe
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  7. Patrick Katayamoyo
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  8. Jonathan K. Mwansa
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  9. Donna R. McCarraher
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Julie A. Denison.

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The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Ethical Approval

All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and national research committees and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

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Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

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Denison, J.A., Packer, C., Stalter, R.M. et al. Factors Related to Incomplete Adherence to Antiretroviral Therapy among Adolescents Attending Three HIV Clinics in the Copperbelt, Zambia. AIDS Behav 22, 996–1005 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10461-017-1944-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10461-017-1944-x

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