Khangale Happy Maybe Maambiwa, Raliphaswa Ndidzulafhi Selina, Tshililo Azwidihwi Rose
Department of Advanced Nursing, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Venda, Thohoyandou 0950, South Africa.
Children (Basel). 2024 Jan 24;11(2):143. doi: 10.3390/children11020143.
Antiretroviral therapy (ART) is the treatment of people infected with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) using anti-HIV drugs. The standard treatment consists of a combination of drugs (often called highly active antiretroviral therapy or HAART) that suppress HIV replication. As a result, people who have been infected live longer while on ART, which was initiated in South Africa in 2004.
The study aimed to explore the experiences of adolescents on antiretroviral therapy in two primary health care clinics in Rustenburg sub-district Northwest Province.
Qualitative, explorative, descriptive, and contextual approaches were adopted. Non-probability purposive sampling was used to select the healthcare facilities, and adolescents were chosen using convenience sampling. In-depth individual interviews were used to collect data from the participants. Only 13 adolescents between the ages of 15 and 19 years were interviewed. Collected data were analyzed using Tesch's eight steps.
Qualitative themes identified included a description of the experiences of adolescents living HIV to adulthood and challenges experienced from childhood to adolescence period. Each theme had different sub-themes which included the paradoxical experiences of being diagnosed with HIV and being on antiretroviral treatment. Adolescents experienced poor adherence to ART due to treatment side effects such as drowsiness, change in body image, and headaches. Self-stigma resulted in adolescents not disclosing their status to their peers, closest and sexual partners which also made them not to adhere well in treatment.
The study findings revealed that HIV-positive adolescents encounter various experiences while on ART, which causes them not to adhere to treatment. In the study, adolescents also experienced self-stigma which also affected their treatment adherence and brought fear of losing their loved ones.
抗逆转录病毒疗法（ART）是使用抗HIV药物对感染人类免疫缺陷病毒（HIV）的人群进行治疗。标准治疗方案由多种药物联合组成（通常称为高效抗逆转录病毒疗法或HAART），可抑制HIV复制。因此，接受ART治疗的感染者寿命得以延长，ART于2004年在南非开始应用。
本研究旨在探索西北省勒斯滕堡地区两家初级卫生保健诊所中接受抗逆转录病毒治疗的青少年的经历。
采用定性、探索性、描述性和情境性研究方法。使用非概率目的抽样法选择医疗机构，采用便利抽样法选取青少年。通过深入的个体访谈收集参与者的数据。仅对13名年龄在15至19岁之间的青少年进行了访谈。使用泰施的八个步骤对收集到的数据进行分析。
确定的定性主题包括青少年从感染HIV到成年的经历描述以及从童年到青春期所经历的挑战。每个主题都有不同的子主题，其中包括被诊断感染HIV和接受抗逆转录病毒治疗的矛盾经历。青少年因嗜睡、身体形象改变和头痛等治疗副作用而对抗逆转录病毒疗法的依从性较差。自我污名化导致青少年不向同龄人、最亲近的人和性伴侣透露自己的感染状况，这也使他们在治疗中依从性不佳。
研究结果显示，HIV阳性青少年在接受抗逆转录病毒治疗时会遇到各种经历，这导致他们不坚持治疗。在该研究中，青少年还经历了自我污名化，这也影响了他们的治疗依从性，并带来了失去亲人的恐惧。
