Perceived Social Support Among Adults Struggling With Adherence to HIV Care and Treatment

Enriquez, Maithe; Mercier, Deborah A.; Cheng, An‐Lin; Banderas, Julie W.

doi:10.1097/jnc.0000000000000059

Cited by 20 publications

(15 citation statements)

References 27 publications

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“…Notable in our sample was the high proportion of middle-aged and aging MSM with no primary or secondary partnerships (45.2%). This finding is concerning because lower levels of perceived social support have been shown to be negatively associated with ART adherence among MSM living with HIV [35,36]. The high proportion of older MSM without partners resembles existing data on social isolation among aging PLHIV.…”

Section: Plos Onementioning

confidence: 76%

Viral suppression among middle-aged and aging MSM living with HIV: Partnership type and quality

et al. 2021

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Functional support—the availability of material aid, emotional support, or companionship—promotes general well-being. For men who have sex with men (MSM) living with HIV, having a person who supports you associates with viral suppression. This study examines the association between supportive partnerships and HIV viral suppression among middle-aged and aging MSM living with HIV. A total of 423 middle-aged and aging MSM (mean age, 58.2 years) from the Multicenter AIDS Cohort Study provided self-reported data about their partnerships. Separate Poisson regression models assessed how partnership type, support, strain, and duration from April 2017 were associated with repeated viral load measurements up to April 2019. Of the follow-up visits (N = 1289), 90.0% of participants were virally suppressed. Most participants reported being non-Hispanic White (61.0%) and college-educated (83.4%). Participants were asked about their primary partnerships (i.e., “someone they are committed to above anyone else”) and secondary partnerships (i.e., those who can also be intimate or supportive but not necessarily romantic or sexual). The participants reported: no partnerships (45.2%), only primary partnerships (31.0%), only secondary partnerships (11.1%), or both primary and secondary partnerships (12.8%). Primary and secondary partnerships had mean (SD) durations of 15.9 (11.3) and 25.2 (16.5) years, respectively. Participants reporting both primary and secondary partnerships (compared with no partnership) showed significantly higher odds of being virally suppressed (adjusted prevalence ratio [aPR], 1.04; 95% CI, 1.00–1.08; p = 0.043). Albeit not statistically significant, primary-only (aPR, 1.01; 95% CI, 0.97–1.06; p = 0.547) or secondary-only (aPR, 1.03; 95% CI, 0.98–1.08; p = 0.224) partnership types were positively associated with viral suppression. Partner support and strain were not associated with viral suppression in any partnership group. Being older and non-Hispanic Black were positively and negatively associated with viral suppression, respectively. Encouraging partnerships should be considered one of clinicians’ many tools to help middle-aged and aging MSM achieve long-term viral suppression.

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Section: Plos Onementioning

confidence: 76%

Viral suppression among middle-aged and aging MSM living with HIV: Partnership type and quality

et al. 2021

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“…These feelings of isolation can affect the individual's attitude toward seeking and committing to treatment. For example, commitment to antiretroviral therapy for an HIV infection has been found to be negatively affected by the internalized stigma of the individual toward being infected and has therefore led to suboptimal adherence to treatment [108][109][110]. Even before being infected with the virus, in the case of SARS-CoV-2, lonelier people were less committed to taking the necessary preventative measures against infection [111]; therefore immune behaviors against the contraction of viruses can be negatively affected by loneliness, putting the lonely individual at higher risk of infection [111], which will then come with social stigma [112], feeding into the vicious cycle of loneliness and infection with stigmatized viruses.…”

Section: Behavioral Immunity Against Viruses Of Social Stigmamentioning

confidence: 99%

Loneliness: An Immunometabolic Syndrome

Pourriyahi

Rezaei

Saghazadeh

et al. 2021

IJERPH

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Loneliness has been defined as an agonizing encounter, experienced when the need for human intimacy is not met adequately, or when a person’s social network does not match their preference, either in number or attributes. This definition helps us realize that the cause of loneliness is not merely being alone, but rather not being in the company we desire. With loneliness being introduced as a measurable, distinct psychological experience, it has been found to be associated with poor health behaviors, heightened stress response, and inadequate physiological repairing activity. With these three major pathways of pathogenesis, loneliness can do much harm; as it impacts both immune and metabolic regulation, altering the levels of inflammatory cytokines, growth factors, acute-phase reactants, chemokines, immunoglobulins, antibody response against viruses and vaccines, and immune cell activity; and affecting stress circuitry, glycemic control, lipid metabolism, body composition, metabolic syndrome, cardiovascular function, cognitive function and mental health, respectively. Taken together, there are too many immunologic and metabolic manifestations associated with the construct of loneliness, and with previous literature showcasing loneliness as a distinct psychological experience and a health determinant, we propose that loneliness, in and of itself, is not just a psychosocial phenomenon. It is also an all-encompassing complex of systemic alterations that occur with it, expanding it into a syndrome of events, linked through a shared network of immunometabolic pathology. This review aims to portray a detailed picture of loneliness as an “immunometabolic syndrome”, with its multifaceted pathology.

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“…Studies on HIV-related stigmatization were primarily conducted in a high HIV prevalence or poor resource setting; however, few studies have been conducted to explore syphilis-related stigmatization in pregnant women (16). Social support, especially perceived social support, is influential in promoting the maintenance of positive health behaviors among people living with HIV (17)(18)(19). For example, a study in the mid-west United States showed that PLWH who lack social support experience challenges in adhering to their treatments (17).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Social support, especially perceived social support, is influential in promoting the maintenance of positive health behaviors among people living with HIV (17)(18)(19). For example, a study in the mid-west United States showed that PLWH who lack social support experience challenges in adhering to their treatments (17). Stigmatization associated with poor social support can lead to psychological distress, which may constitute a barrier to the implementation of EMTCT services (16,19,20).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Stigmatization and Social Support of Pregnant Women With HIV or Syphilis in Eastern China: A Mixed-Method Study

Zhang

Wang

et al. 2022

Front. Public Health

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BackgroundStigmatization and poor social support are challenges faced by individuals living with HIV or sexually transmitted disease, which can have a profound negative impact on their healthcare. Mother-to-child transmission of either HIV or syphilis can lead to adverse maternal and fetal outcomes. The aim of this study was to investigate stigmatization and social support of pregnant women with HIV or syphilis in eastern China.MethodsThis was an explanatory sequential mixed-method study conducted in Zhejiang province, China in 2019. Stigmatization, social support, and the associated factors toward HIV or syphilis were evaluated using questionnaires. The social support rating scale was used to evaluate social support, where a score <25% was defined as poor social support. A logistic regression model was used to explore the association between stigmatization and poor social support.ResultsA total of 448 women (HIV positive, N = 93; syphilis, N = 355) were recruited in this study. Higher stigmatization was observed in pregnant women with HIV compared to those with syphilis (53.76% vs. 24.36%, p < 0.001), and poorer social support was observed in women with HIV compared with those with syphilis (40.86% vs. 19.86%, p < 0.001), with significant distributions of the total social support scores (Z = −1.976, p = 0.048) and scores on objectivity (Z = −2.036, p = 0.042) and subjectivity (Z = −2.500, p = 0.012). Similar social support among HIV or syphilis pregnant women was observed in medical healthcare facilities. In multivariable logistic model analysis, stigmatization (ORadj = 2.927; 95%CI, 1.714–4.996; p < 0.001) and ethnic minority (ORadj = 2.373; 95%CI, 1.113–5.056; p = 0.025) were negatively associated with social support. Interestingly, employment status was associated with improved social support (ORadj = 0.345; 95%CI, 0.180–0.662; p = 0.001).ConclusionStigmatization among pregnant women with HIV or syphilis remains high. We demonstrated that stigmatization was a significant predictor of low social support in pregnant women with HIV or syphilis. The support shown in medical facilities was similar toward pregnant women with HIV or syphilis. Implementation of stigmatization eradication and social support strategies targeting pregnant women with HIV or syphilis may therefore improve the dual elimination of mother-to-child transmission service.

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Perceived Social Support Among Adults Struggling With Adherence to HIV Care and Treatment

Cited by 20 publications

References 27 publications

Viral suppression among middle-aged and aging MSM living with HIV: Partnership type and quality

Viral suppression among middle-aged and aging MSM living with HIV: Partnership type and quality

Loneliness: An Immunometabolic Syndrome

Stigmatization and Social Support of Pregnant Women With HIV or Syphilis in Eastern China: A Mixed-Method Study

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