Physical development and mental health in South African perinatally HIV-positive adolescents on antiretroviral therapy and their caregivers with and without household food insecurity

Southern African Journal of HIV Medicine

 
 
Field Value
 
Title Physical development and mental health in South African perinatally HIV-positive adolescents on antiretroviral therapy and their caregivers with and without household food insecurity
 
Creator Heany, Sarah Phillips, Nicole Myer, Landon Zar, Heather Stein, Dan Hoare, Jacqueline
 
Subject HIV Medicine; Psychiatry; Paediatrics; Epidemiology HIV; caregiver depression; behavioural problems; hunger risk; food security; poverty
Description Background: Perinatally acquired HIV-infected (PHIV+) adolescents have shown impairments in neurocognitive function and mental health problems compared with their peers. The contribution of food insecurity to such impairments has not been explored.Objectives: The aim of this report has been to explore the contribution of food insecurity to neurocognitive impairment and mental health problems in adolescents with perinatally-acquired HIV infection.Method: A total of 248 PHIV+ adolescents and healthy controls aged between 9 and 12 years completed a neuropsychological battery, the Childhood Behaviour Checklist (CBCL) and the Becks Youth Inventory. Head circumference, body mass index (BMI), height for age (HAZ), Tanner pubertal staging, albumin, haemoglobin, CD4 and viral loads were also measured. Participants’ caregivers were interviewed about their mental health and household food security. T-tests were used to assess for differences in food secure and food insecure households.Results: Caregivers of PHIV+ adolescents reported higher levels of depressive symptoms and household food insecurity. Increased food insecurity was associated with more behavioural problems in adolescents, as well as lower haemoglobin and albumin levels, faster processing speed and increased Tanner staging in boys. Body mass index and HAZ were not affected by food insecurity.Conclusion: These findings suggest that household food insecurity is associated with some altered behavioural, physical and physiological outcomes, which could complicate and compound the existing difficulties in PHIV+ households.
 
Publisher AOSIS
 
Contributor
Date 2021-12-15
 
Type info:eu-repo/semantics/article info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion — Case control observational study
Format text/html application/epub+zip text/xml application/pdf
Identifier 10.4102/sajhivmed.v22i1.1316
 
Source Southern African Journal of HIV Medicine; Vol 22, No 1 (2021); 7 pages 2078-6751 1608-9693
 
Language eng
 
Relation
The following web links (URLs) may trigger a file download or direct you to an alternative webpage to gain access to a publication file format of the published article:

https://sajhivmed.org.za/index.php/hivmed/article/view/1316/2671 https://sajhivmed.org.za/index.php/hivmed/article/view/1316/2672 https://sajhivmed.org.za/index.php/hivmed/article/view/1316/2673 https://sajhivmed.org.za/index.php/hivmed/article/view/1316/2674
 
Coverage South Africa Modern day Adolescents, sub-saharan African
Rights Copyright (c) 2021 Sarah Heany https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
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