Researchers in Mozambique Study Factors that Influence the Success of Antiretroviral Therapy
HIV/AIDS is rampant in Mozambique, where 1.8 million adults and children are currently living with this communicable and life-threatening disease, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). Antiretroviral therapy, the primary treatment for HIV/AIDS, has drastically decreased the death rate of those suffering from the disease. WHO reports that more than 800,000 people in sub-Saharan Africa receive antiretroviral drugs, with over 100,000 of these patients residing in Mozambique.
To study the factors that influence outcomes of antiretroviral therapy, NIAID supports the International Epidemiology Databases to Evaluate AIDS (IeDEA), a global network of clinics that serve HIV patients. IeDEA-Southern Africa (IeDEA-SA) is a partnership of 17 clinics and clinical cohorts in six countries in southern Africa, including Mozambique, and involves more than 35,000 study participants.
IeDEA-SA researchers are evaluating the response to HIV therapy and care among HIV-infected children and adults. Because the study is large, the IeDEA-SA team can also evaluate the impact of therapy among patients with other health conditions such as pregnancy. In addition to studying individual cases, IeDEA-SA researchers conduct population-level studies, which include comparisons of care and antiretroviral delivery systems, waiting times for treatment, and mortality rates for patients in care.
IeDEA-SA studies explore how complications of HIV/AIDS, such as co-infection with tuberculosis (TB), may affect treatment outcomes. In Mozambique, 48 percent of HIV/AIDS patients between ages 15 and 49 concurrently suffer from TB. Researchers are also examining the success of antiretroviral treatment in patients who suffer from immune reconstitution syndrome and numerous other infections caused by pathogens that usually do not cause harm in a healthy immune system.
Read more about the IeDEA program (Non-government).