Abstract
Background
Access to ART has significantly reduced morbidity and mortality and improved quality of life in people living with HIV (PLWH). Treatment supporter interventions (TSIs) utilize patient or facility selected individuals to increase optimal ART adherence through home visits, peer support and medication management. This aim of this meta-analysis is to evaluate the effectiveness of TSIs in improving optimal ART adherence among PLWH in SSA using process- and outcome-oriented measures.
Methods
We searched PubMed, EMBASE, SCOPUS, Web of Science (WOS), Cochrane Library, and ClinicalTrials.gov for randomized controlled trials or cohort studies comparing treatment supporter interventions to the standard of care conducted in Eastern and Southern Africa. The primary outcomes were ART adherence measured by pill counts and virologic suppression. Pooled risk ratios with 95% confidence intervals were calculated using random-effects models. Stratified analyses and meta-regression were conducted to determine the effect of study type and patient nomination of treatment supporters on ART adherence.
Results
Sixteen studies, 10 RCTs and 6 cohort studies, were selected for inclusion. Virologic suppression was reported in 14 studies with 12,457 individuals in TSIs and 23,592 receiving the standard of care. Optimal ART adherence was reported in 7 RCTs only (2,185 individuals in TSI and 1,545 receiving SOC). Optimal ART adherence was 7.6% higher in TSIs compared with SOC (pooled RR 1.076, 95% CI 1.005–1.151, p = 0.035). Heterogeneity of these studies was high (I2 = 91.1%). Virologic suppression was 5% higher in TSIs compared with the standard of care (pooled RR 1.05, 95% CI 1.019–1.081, P = 0.001). Meta-regression demonstrated that virologic suppression did not significantly vary by study type (b = −0.042, 95% CI −0.09–0.001, P = 0.057) and patient selection of the treatment supporter (b = 0.026, 95% CI −0.07–0.12, P = 0.554).
Conclusion
Optimal ART adherence is marginally higher in treatment supporter interventions compared with the standard of care. Patient-nominated supporters achieve similar rates of virologic suppression to facility-selected supporters, and could play a critical role in addressing disparities in health outcomes among PLWH.
Disclosures
All authors: No reported disclosures.
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