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Questioning the 'Ease' in disease: Was living with HIV a burden or boost during the first wave of Covid-19 in France? A qualitative study (COVIDHIV).

Authors :
Guillaume Roucoux
Frédérique Thonon
David Zucman
David Rey
Sophie Abgrall
Lars E Eriksson
Marie Préau
David Michels
Antoine Chéret
Martin Duracinsky
Source :
PLoS ONE, Vol 19, Iss 3, p e0295223 (2024)
Publication Year :
2024
Publisher :
Public Library of Science (PLoS), 2024.

Abstract

IntroductionClinical research has focused on risk factors and treatment for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-COV-2), particularly in people with a comorbidity including the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), but little attention has been paid to the care pathway. This article aims to show how living with HIV may have been a biopsychosocial burden or boost in care pathways for Covid-19.MethodPeople living with HIV (PLHIV) from 9 clinical centers were invited to participate in this qualitative study. The sampling was purposive with a maximum variation in their sociodemographic profiles. Semi-structured interviews were conducted until data saturation, then coded for thematic analysis, using an inductive general approach.ResultsWe interviewed 34 PLHIV of which 20 had SARS-COV-2 once. They were 24 males, 26 born in France; median age: 55. Twenty had a CD4 number above 500, and all were on antiretroviral therapy (ART). HIV appeared as a burden when Covid-19 symptoms reminded HIV seroconversion, fear of contamination, and triggered questions about ART effectiveness. HIV was not considered relevant when diagnosing Covid-19, caused fear of disclosure when participants sought SARS-COV-2 testing, and its care in hospitals was disrupted by the pandemic. ART-pill fatigue caused avoidance for Covid-19 treatment. As a boost, living with HIV led participants to observe symptoms, to get advice from healthcare professionals, and screening access through them. Some participants could accept the result of screening or a clinical diagnosis out of resilience. Some could consider ART or another drug prescribed by their HIV specialist help them to recover from Covid-19.ConclusionLiving with HIV could function as a burden and/or a boost in the care pathways for Covid-19, according to patients' relationship to their HIV history, comorbidities and representation of ART. Covid-19 in PLHIV needs further qualitative study to gain a more comprehensive assessment of the pandemic's consequences on their lives and coping strategies.

Subjects

Subjects :
Medicine
Science

Details

Language :
English
ISSN :
19326203
Volume :
19
Issue :
3
Database :
Directory of Open Access Journals
Journal :
PLoS ONE
Publication Type :
Academic Journal
Accession number :
edsdoj.83e3e8443a074df2ad7b1d879b37b88c
Document Type :
article
Full Text :
https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0295223&type=printable