Antiretroviral Treatment Knowledge and Stigma—Implications for Programs and HIV Treatment Interventions in Rural Tanzanian Populations

Abela Mpobela Agnarson, Francis Levira, Honorati Masanja, Anna Mia Ekström and Anna Thorson

PLOS ONE, 2013, vol. 8, issue 1, 1-6

Abstract: Objective: To analyse antiretroviral treatment (ART) knowledge and HIV- and ART-related stigma among the adult population in a rural Tanzanian community. Design: Population-based cross-sectional survey of 694 adults (15–49 years of age). Methods: Latent class analysis (LCA) categorized respondents' levels of ART knowledge and of ART-related stigma. Multinomial logistic regression assessed the association between the levels of ART knowledge and HIV- and ART-related stigma, while controlling for the effects of age, gender, education, marital status and occupation. Results: More than one-third of men and women in the study reported that they had never heard of ART. Among those who had heard of ART, 24% were east informed about ART, 8% moderately informed, and 68% highly informed. Regarding ART-related stigma, 28% were least stigmatizing, 41% moderately stigmatizing, and 31% highly stigmatizing toward persons taking ART. Respondents that had at least primary education were more likely to have high levels of knowledge about ART (OR 3.09, 95% CI 1.61–5.94). Participants highly informed about ART held less HIV- and ART-related stigma towards ART patients (OR 0.26, 95% CI 0.09–0.74). Conclusion: The lack of ART knowledge is broad, and there is a strong association between ART knowledge and individual education level. These are relevant findings for both HIV prevention and HIV treatment program interventions that address ART-related stigma across the entire spectrum of the community.

Date: 2013
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:plo:pone00:0053993

DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0053993

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