Care-Giver Factors Associated With Adherence To Antiretroviral Therapy In Hiv Infected Children: A Case Of Thika District Hospital In Kenya

ABSTRACT

Survival of children with AIDS has increased considerably with the use of effective antiretroviral drugs, but the benefits of this therapy are limited by the difficulty of adherence to the treatment. This cross-sectional study was aimed at estimating the prevalence of adherence to antiretrovirals and identifying the associated caregiver factors affecting adherence among children resident in Thika town. Two hundred child caregivers were interviewed. The 24 Hour Recall Interview technique utilized to evaluate adherence prevalence allowed the detection of conscious loss of dose/s. Adherence was defined when the child had taken 100% of the prescribed medication during 24 hour period prior to the interview. Non-adherence was defined when the child missed even one dose of a medication during the 24 hour period prior to the interview. A general prevalence of adherence/non-adherence was established. The data was processed using SPSS 12.0 and Epi info 6.0 statistical packages. The significance of the findings was determined by Chi-square test and Logistic regression was used to remove the effect of confounding variables. The rate of adherence at Thika District Hospital was found to be 42%, meaning that pediatric adherence to ART in this setting is a challenge. Primary caregivers‟ ability to follow the child‟s ART based on the rigorous schedules χ2=35.31:1df: p