Abstract
Background The burden of HIV infection is higher among the youth who also experience higher attrition rates compared to other age groups. Understanding the dynamics of their retention on HIV treatment and predictors of attrition is necessary for establishing streamlined interventions targeting this population.
Objective- This study examined the retention and predictors of attrition among HIV-infected youth enrolled on care and treatment in Rorya District Council (DC), Mara Region, Tanzania.
Methodology A clinic-based cross-sectional study was conducted in Rorya DC, Tanzania. Study participants included all HIV-infected youths who were consecutively initiated on ART between October 2017 and September 2018. Records on participant’s characteristics during enrolment and their clinic visits to a maximum of 12 months after ART initiation were reviewed. The data on specified variables were captured by using a pre-tested structured data collection tool and Stata IC 14 was used for data entry, cleaning, and analysis.
Results-A total of 253 client’s records meeting the inclusion criteria were collected and analyzed. Overall, the retention at 3, 6, and 12 months were 81.4%, 69.2%, and 59.3% respectively. Independent predictors of attrition among youth were being aged 20-24 years (AOR, 5.3, CI: 2.56-10.94), being a male (AOR, 6.61, CI: 2.46-17.74), being single or never married (AOR, 4.66, CI: 2.13-10.23), having a baseline WHO clinical stage 2 or 3 (AOR, O.O2, CI: 1.09-4.63), and reporting having no treatment supporter (AOR, 9.22, CI: 2.38-35.79).
Conclusion-The overall retention of HIV-infected youth initiated on ART is still low and the independent predictors of attrition among youth are age, sex, WHO clinical stage 2 and 3, marital status, and having no treatment supporter. Urgent attention to retaining PLHIV youth initiated on treatment is required and should focus to target youths with high risks for attrition.
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