Comorbid mental health disorders in persons living with HIV: Adherence to antiretroviral therapy.

Only 41 participants were analysed, and the authors said the study was likely underpowered, so small or absent associations for social support, employment, motivation, and coping may not be reliable. MEMS adherence data were missing for 31.7% of participants, above the 30% threshold the authors used for unbiased imputation, and imputed values were used. The study was observational and used existing parent-study data, so it cannot show that housing, employment, social support, motivation, or coping cause better adherence. The paper states that parent study exclusion criteria included current substance abuse and major psychiatric disorder, but the sub-study selected participants with mental health or substance use comorbidities, so the participant selection is unclear. The sample was younger and included more women than the national and Colorado populations of people living with HIV, so the results may not apply to all patients. Adherence was defined as 85% or higher, a cutoff chosen from newer ART literature, and MEMS bottle openings may not equal actual medication taking.

The supplied text does not include a conflict-of-interest declaration. The publication types list NIH extramural research support.

Do not conclude that providing housing, employment, or social support will improve ART adherence. The study was a small observational analysis of 41 participants, and only housing was statistically significant; social support and employment were not significant.