Personality and adherence to antiretroviral therapy in HIV-infected adult patients

Objective: Antiretroviral therapy (ART) has been able to transform HIV infection into a chronic disease. However, ART adherence remains an important barrier and personality traits have been postulated as a factor to be considered. This study aims to identify personality traits that can affect ART adherence, taking into account other potentially influencing factors. Methods: Case-control study. Controls and cases were classified using the percentage ART dispensation as recorded in the Hospital Pharmacy database. Controls were defined as people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) with percentage ART dispensation during the last year 95% and cases were defined as PLWHA with percentage ART dispensation during the last year <90%. Sociodemographic, clinical parameters of HIV infection, psychopathological and neuropsychological factors were collected. Personality was assessed using the NEO PI-R Personality Inventory, questionnaire based on the Five Factor Model of Personality. Statistical analysis was performed using logistic regression (SPSS v.22). Results: 125 PLWHA were included: 79 controls and 46 cases. After adjusting for confounding variables, logistic regression analysis showed that poor adherence was associated with Neuroticism (OR 1.2, 95%CI: 1.021?1.385) and Impulsivity (N5) (OR 1.5, 95%CI: 1.066?2.163). In contrast, each additional point in Order (C2) (OR 0.8, 95%CI: 0.679?0.992) or Values (O6) (OR 0.8, 95%CI: 0.710?0.974) were associated with good ART adherence. Conclusions: Personality is a variable to be considered in ART adherence. Implementation of the personality in the assessment of PLWHA helps identify those individuals potentially more likely to exhibit poorer ART adherence.

Automated summary

This study identified that Neuroticism and Impulsivity were associated with poor ART adherence, while Order and Values were associated with good ART adherence among PLWHA. It suggests that personality traits play a role in ART adherence, and considering these traits during assessment may help identify individuals at risk of poor adherence.