Loneliness and HIV-related stigma explain depression among older HIV-positive adults

Background: Advances in the treatment of HIV have resulted in a large growing population of older adults with HIV. These aging adults face added social, psychological, and physical challenges associated with managing the process of aging in addition to their HIV disease. Meanwhile, these factors can significantly impact quality of life. Though researchers have demonstrated correlations between depression, loneliness, health, and HIV/AIDS-related stigma, there has been little evaluation of these associations among HIV-positive adults over the age of 50.

Methods: Data for these analyses were taken from the Research on Older Adults with HIV (ROAH) study of 914 New York City-based HIV-positive men and women over the age of 50.

Results: In total, 39.1% of participants exhibited symptoms of major depression (CES-D > 23). Multivariate modeling successfully explained 42% of the variance in depression, with depression being significantly related to increased HIV-associated stigma, increased loneliness, decreased cognitive functioning, reduced levels of energy, and being younger.

Conclusion: These data underscore the need for service providers and researchers to assert more aggressive and innovative efforts to resolve both psychosocial and physical health issues that characterize the graying of the AIDS epidemic in the United States. Data suggest that focusing efforts to reduce HIV-related stigma and loneliness may have lasting effects in reducing major depressive symptoms and improving perceived health.