Depressive symptoms in HIV-infected patients treated with highly active antiretroviral therapy

introduction: the prevalence of depressive disorders in hiv-infected patients ranges from 12% to 66% and is undiagnosed in 50% to 60% of these patients. depression in hiv-infected individuals may be associated with poor antiretroviral treatment (art) outcomes, since it may direct influence compliance. objective: to assess the presence of symptoms and risk factors for depression in patients on art. methods: cross-sectional study. certified interviewers administered questionnaires and the beck depression inventory (bdi), and participants' self-reported compliance to art. clinical and laboratory variables were obtained from clinical records. patients with bdi > 12 were defined as depressed. results out of the 250 patients invited to participate, 246 (98%) consented. mean age was 41 ± 9.9 years; most were male (63%). income ranged from 0-14 brazilian minimum wages. aids (cdc stage c) had been diagnosed in 97%, and 81% were in stable immune status. one hundred ninety-one (78%) reported compliance, and 161 (68%) had undetectable viral loads. the prevalence of depressive symptoms was 32% (95% ci 26-40). in multivariate analysis, depressive symptoms were significantly associated with income (prevalence ratio [pr] = 0.85; 95% ci 0.74-0.97; p = 0.02). conclusions: depressive symptoms are frequent in patients on art, and are associated with low income.