A systematic review of cohort studies of the quality of life in HIV/AIDS patients after antiretroviral therapy

Abstract

The aim of this paper was to review cohort studies that analyze changes in the quality of life of people living with HIV/AIDS. We searched the PubMed and EmBase databases from inception to December 2012 for primary cohort studies of the quality of life of people living with HIV/AIDS after combination antiretroviral therapy (cART). Two independent reviewers screened and selected published studies of quality of life that had been followed up for more than 12 weeks after the beginning of cART. Data from the papers were analyzed to identify common characteristics of the effects of cART on the quality of life of HIV/AIDS patients. Eight cohort studies were found: only four were assessed as high quality and four were assessed as moderate quality. None of the studies described patient selection. Six studies followed the patients for one year or more, and the other studies for less than 6 months. Seven studies reported quality of life had been improved after initiation of cART, and one study reported no change. Previous research suggested that cART improved the quality of life of AIDS patients for a limited time, so further research for longer periods is needed to confirm this outcome.

Calidad de vida relacionada a la salud en personas con VIH y factores asociados

“…Esto debería impactar de manera positiva en la CVRS, sin embargo, los estudios que evalúan dicha relación muestran resultados disímiles. Se ha observado mejor score de CVRS en estudios transversales en pacientes que inician TARV y en estudios longitudinales con seguimiento máximo de 12 meses (3,10,14,36) . En oposición, otros estudios con mayor tiempo de seguimiento encuentran menor puntuación de CVRS cuanto mayor es el tiempo de exposición al TARV (21) .…”

“…En contraposición, se ha descrito peor CVRS en relación con efectos adversos y toxicidades vinculadas al TARV, como modificaciones corporales y lipodistrofia (3,6,9,21) . Los estudios longitudinales que evalúan calidad de vida basal (al inicio del TARV) y en diferentes puntos del seguimiento reportan mejoría en los scores, especialmente entre pacientes sintomáticos, mientras que este efecto se pierde cuando aumenta el tiempo de seguimiento (20,28,32,35,36) . La adherencia es determinante de la efectividad del TARV y, como consecuencia, del curso clínico del VIH.…”

Efficacy of a Social Self-Value Empowerment Intervention to Improve Quality of Life of HIV Infected People Receiving Antiretroviral Treatment in Nepal: A Randomized Controlled Trial

“…The effect of ART on QoL was found to be reasonable among HIV infected people [13–15]. Further, their quality of life is influenced by health status, economic factors and psychological status [16].…”

Survival of AIDS Patients Treated with Traditional Chinese Medicine in Rural Central China: A Retrospective Cohort Study, 2004–2012

“…It is well established that cART reduces mortality and improves the quality of life of HIV patients [2]. However, there are large variations in treatment outcomes because of differences in adherence to cART [3, 4], which can be poor because of adverse effects of cART, such as nausea, diarrhea, fatigue, lipodystrophy, and skin disorders [5, 6].…”