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Background: The impact of the "Treat all" policy on the individual and in terms of public health is closely related to early diagnosis and retention in care. Patient-level data are scarce in Madagascar. In this study, we aimed to describe the profile of a cohort of newly diagnosed people living with HIV/AIDS (PLHIV), identify their outcomes, and assess factors associated with attrition from care and advanced HIV disease (AHD) at presentation., Methods: We conducted a retrospective cohort study of PLHIV aged ≥15 years newly diagnosed at the University Hospital Joseph Raseta Befelatanana Antananarivo from 1 January 2010 to 31 December 2016., Results: A total of 490 PLHIV were included in the cohort analysis. In total, 67.1% were male. The median age (interquartile range) at enrollment in care was 29 years (24-38). Overall, 36.1% of PLHIV were diagnosed with AHD at baseline. The proportion of patients with WHO stage IV at baseline increased significantly from 3.3% in 2010 to 31% in 2016 ( p = 0.001 for trend). The probability of retention in care after the diagnosis at 12 months, 24 months, and 36 months was 71.8%, 65.5%, and 61.3%, respectively. Age ≥ 40 years (aHR: 1.55; 95% CI: 1.05-2.29; p = 0.026), low level of education (aHR:1.62; 95% CI: 1.11-2.36; p = 0,013), unspecified level of education (aHR:2.18; 95% CI: 1.37-3.47; p = 0.001) and unemployment (aHR:1.52; 95% CI: 1.07-2.16; p = 0.019) were independently associated with attrition from care. Factors associated with AHD at baseline were age ≥ 40 (aOR: 2.77; 95% CI: 1.38-5.57, p = 0.004), unspecified level of education (aOR: 3.80; 95% CI: 1.58-9.16, p = 0.003) and presence of clinical symptoms at baseline (aOR: 23.81; 95% CI: 10.7-52.98; p < 0.001). Sex workers were independently less likely to have an AHD at presentation (aOR: 0.23; 95% CI: 0.05-0.96, p = 0.044)., Conclusion: Sociodemographic determinants influenced retention in care more than clinical factors. The presence of clinical symptoms and sociodemographic determinants were the main factors associated with AHD at baseline., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (Copyright © 2024 Raberahona, Rakotomalala, Andriananja, Andriamamonjisoa, Rakotomijoro, Andrianasolo, Rakotoarivelo and Randria.)

Background: Adherence to antiretroviral therapy (ART) may be influenced by knowledge, perception and perception regarding ART. The purpose of this study was to assess knowledge, attitude/perception and practice regarding ART among people living with HIV/AIDS (PLHIV)., Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional survey to assess knowledge, attitudes, perception and practices ART in PLHIV. The survey was suggested to all PLHIV of at least 18 years old and who were on ART for at least 1 month. PLHIV who were unable to answer questions correctly and those who did not complete the survey for any reason were excluded., Results: During the study period, 234 PLHIV were included. Participants were mostly men (75.2%). The median age was 33 years (IQR: 27-41). The median time since HIV diagnosis was 25 months (IQR: 9-56) and the median duration of ART was 18 months (IQR: 8-48). 87.6% had an overall good knowledge of ART. However, only 3.2% knew the name of their ART, 31.2% were aware that ART should be taken at a fixed time and 17.1% knew how to take ART in relation to food intake. 75.6% of participants had an overall positive attitude/perception of ART. However, 10.7% were convinced that other methods were more effective than ART for treating HIV and 42.7% thought that taking ART was shameful. The assessment of practices showed that in case of missed dose, 48.3% of participants routinely skipped this dose instead of trying to take it as soon as possible. In multivariate analysis, good knowledge of ART was independently associated with high level of education (aOR: 4.7, IC95%: 1.6-13.7, p = 0.004) and disclosure of HIV status (aOR: 2.7, IC95%: 1.1-6.6, p = 0.029)., Conclusions: This study showed an overall good knowledge and a predominantly positive attitude/perception of ART. However, accurate knowledge of ART intake was insufficient and the stigma associated with taking ART remained very present. Furthermore, very heterogeneous practices may reflect lack of instruction given by the physician regarding ART intake.

Background: During the last few years, significant efforts have been made to improve access to antiretroviral therapy which led to dramatic reduction in AIDS-related events and mortality in HIV positive patients at the global level. However, current data in Africa suggested modest impact of widespread antiretroviral therapy scale-up especially regarding HIV-related hospitalization. In this study, we aimed to describe causes of hospitalization and factors associated with AIDS-defining events and inpatient mortality., Materials and Methods: A retrospective study was performed on medical records of HIV positive patients admitted for at least 24 hours in the Infectious Diseases Unit of the University Hospital Joseph Raseta Befelatanana Antananarivo. Cause of hospitalization was considered as the main diagnosis related to the symptoms at admission. Diagnostic criteria were based on criteria described in WHO guidelines. AIDS-defining events were defined as diseases corresponding to WHO stage 4 or category C of CDC classification., Results: From 2010 to 2016, 236 hospital admissions were included. AIDS-defining events were the most frequent cause of hospitalization (61.9%) with an increasing trend during the study period. Tuberculosis (28.4%), pneumocystis pneumonia (11.4%), cerebral toxoplasmosis (7.2%) and cryptococcosis (5.5%) were the most frequent AIDS-defining events. Tuberculosis was also the most frequent cause of overall hospitalization. In multivariate analysis, recent HIV diagnosis (aOR = 2.0, 95% CI: 1.0-3.9), CD4<200 cells/μl (aOR = 4.0, 95%CI: 1.9-8.1), persistent fever (aOR = 4.4, 95%CI: 2.1-9.0), duration of symptoms≥ 6 weeks (aOR = 2.6, 95%CI: 1.2-5.4) were associated with AIDS-defining events. Overall inpatient mortality was 19.5%. Age≥55 years (aOR = 4.9, 95%CI: 1.5-16.6), neurological signs (aOR = 3.2, 95%CI: 1.5-6.9) and AIDS-defining events (aOR = 2.9, 95%CI: 1.2--7.2) were associated with inpatient mortality., Conclusions: AIDS-defining events were the most frequent cause of hospitalization during the study period. Factors associated with AIDS-defining events mostly reflected delay in HIV diagnosis. Factors associated with mortality were advanced age, neurological signs and AIDS-defining events., Competing Interests: The authors have declared that no competing interests exist.