ARV defaults blamed on beer

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ALCOHOL is one of the major reasons some Aids patients enrolled at Bulawayo’s two referral hospitals and council clinics are defaulting on anti-retroviral treatment (ART), a survey has revealed.

ALCOHOL is one of the major reasons some Aids patients enrolled at Bulawayo’s two referral hospitals and council clinics are defaulting on anti-retroviral treatment (ART), a survey has revealed.

ELIZABETH NDHLOVU-DUMBRENI STAFF REPORTER

According to a recent study by the National Aids Council (NAC), the study carried at Mpilo Central Hospital and the Bulawayo United Hospitals as well as council clinics at Nketa, Magwegwe, Khami Road and Emakhandeni, most of the defaulters took alcohol.

NAC’s Bulawayo provincial Aids co-ordinator Sinatra Nyathi told a workshop held in Harare last week that poor adherence to treatment can result in the development of drug-resistant HIV strains.

“It is evident that alcohol consumption interferes with ART adherence,” she said.

“Alcohol use influences how reliably people take their medication, which can affect HIV progression.

“The more a person drinks alcohol, the more medication he/she is likely to miss because it affects one’s judgment.

“There is need therefore to address alcohol use in improving anti-retroviral (ARV) adherence as alcohol use affects adherence in a number of ways, mainly through drug metabolism in the liver.

“Alcohol, if consumed in excess, causes liver damage which may affect the metabolism of ARVs in the system.”

She said the study focused on six sites that had ART registered, which first initiated treatment in 2004.

“All HIV-positive adult patients who were initiated on ART from between April 2004 and December 2012 who have adhered to treatment and have not missed a single dose (control) and those who had failed to adhere to treatment by missing from one dose to multiple doses (case) were on the ART register of Bulawayo province,” she said.

Adherence to ART, Nyathi said, involves taking correct amounts of medication at the right time and in the way it was prescribed.

“Anti-retroviral drugs are medications to be taken for life and they need strict adherence of more than 90% to ensure efficacy in viral suppression, hence the need to take drugs on time and cut on alcohol consumption,” she said.

“Non-adherence to ART may thus take various forms, such as not taking the medication at all, taking the medication at the wrong time, taking the wrong dose due to misunderstanding treatment directions, or prematurely terminating the medication without consulting the health provider.”

Apart from alcohol consumption, Nyathi said the major reasons for missing doses were failure to take medication and being away from home.

“Patient`s relationship with service providers also influenced treatment adherence, those that had a good relationship with service providers like nurses and doctors were more likely to adhere compared to those that cited poor relations,” she added.