Factors Influencing the Initiation of Treatment after the Diagnosis of Korean Patients with HIV

ABSTRACT

PURPOSE: This study has been conducted to identify factors that influence the initiation of treatment after the diagnosis of Korean patients with HIV. METHODS: A cross-sectional study design was used, and 290 patients with HIV from outpatient departments of 7 hospitals participated. Self-report questionnaires included items on the days from the primary diagnosis to the initiation of treatment, and the patients' demographic and disease related characteristics. Negative binomial regression model (NBR) was utilized to determine risk factors influencing the initiation of treatment after the diagnosis of the patients with HIV. RESULTS: The skewness of days was 6.62, and the degree of asymmetry of distribution was severe. In NBR, patients who were in their 40s and 50s, female, unmarried and living with their family, jobless, in a middle or high level of economic status, and diagnosed before 2014 showed a higher risk of delayed treatment than patients who were younger, male, married and living with family, in a low level of economic status, and diagnosed in 2014 or afterwards. CONCLUSION: The findings suggest the necessity of intervention to promote HIV patients' early entry into treatment based on the participants' characteristics.