Published In

AIDS

Document Type

Post-Print

Publication Date

9-2014

Subjects

AIDS (Disease) -- Uganda -- Effect of availability of anti-retroviral drugs on, AIDS (Disease) -- Patients -- Stigma (Social psychology), AIDS (Disease) -- Patients -- Treatment

Physical Description

16 pages

Abstract

Objective—Program implementers have argued that the increasing availability of anti-retroviral therapy (ART) will reduce the stigma of HIV. We analyzed data from Uganda to assess how HIV-related stigma has changed during a period of ART expansion.

Design—Serial cross-sectional surveys.

Methods—We analyzed data from the Uganda AIDS Rural Treatment Outcomes (UARTO) study during 2007-2012 to estimate trends in internalized stigma among people living with HIV (PLHIV) at the time of treatment initiation. We analyzed data from the Uganda Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) from 2006 and 2011 to estimate trends in stigmatizing attitudes and anticipated stigma in the general population. We fitted regression models adjusted for socio-demographic characteristics, with year of data collection as the primary explanatory variable.

Results—We estimated an upward trend in internalized stigma among PLHIV presenting for treatment initiation (adjusted b=0.18; 95% CI, 0.06 to 0.30). In the general population, the odds of reporting anticipated stigma were greater in 2011 compared to 2006 (adjusted OR=1.80; 95% CI, 1.51 to 2.13), despite an apparent decline in stigmatizing attitudes (adjusted OR=0.62; 95% CI, 0.52 to 0.74).

Conclusions—Internalized stigma has increased over time among PLHIV in the setting of worsening anticipated stigma in the general population. Further study is needed to better understand the reasons for increasing HIV-related stigma in Uganda and its impact on HIV prevention efforts.

Description

At the time of writing, David Bangsberg was affiliated with Harvard Medical School, Massachusetts General Hospital, and Mbarara University of Science and Technology.

Author's version of an article that subsequently appeared in AIDS, 2015 January 2; 29(1): 83–90. doi:10.1097/QAD.0000000000000495; published by Lippincott, Williams & Wilkins for the International AIDS Society.

DOI

10.1097/QAD.0000000000000495

Persistent Identifier

http://archives.pdx.edu/ds/psu/18623

Publisher

Lippincott, Williams & Wilkins

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