International Journal of TROPICAL DISEASE & Health

Introduction: Depression with HIV constitute a co-morbid condition associated with severe sequalae, which include deliberate self-harm and suicide, even among adolescents. Identifying demographic and HIV-related determinants of depression among adolescents living with HIV is vital for instituting relevant evidence-based interventions for curbing this problem. Thus this aimed to determine the relationship between these factors (socio-demographic and HIV-related factors) and depression among adolescents living with HIV.

Methods: A cross-sectional hospital-based study was employed. It involved 140 HIV-infected adolescents, who were selected from the HIV Paediatric clinic of the University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital (UPTH) via systematic sampling method. Depression was determined based on the depression component of the depression anxiety stress scale (DASS-21), while social support was assessed using the social support rating scale. Socio-demographic and HIV-related factors comprised independent variables, while dependent variable was depression.  Bivariate and multivariate analyses were performed at p<0.05.

Results: The mean (±) age of HIV-infected adolescents in the study was 14.05±2.68years. Close to half of the adolescents in the study had been living with HIV from birth (46.4%;n=65). The prevalence of depression was 14.2% (n=20). HIV-infected adolescents aged ≥16 years were four times more likely to experience depression than their younger aged counterparts (AOR: 4.40;95%CI:1.42-13.70). Also, those with higher social support had significantly lower odds of experiencing depression (AOR:0.94;95%CI:0.90-0.99).

Conclusion: About 1 in 7 adolescents living with HIV are burdened with depression in the study area. Social support and age of adolescents showed significant relationship with depression in the study. The integration of mental health in Paediatric HIV care could optimize health outcomes.