PSYCHIATRIC MORBIDITY RESPONSIBLE FOR PREDISPOSING INDIVIDUAL FOR HIV INFECTION

Dr Shrikant Shankar Meshram

Volume : V, Issue : X, October - 2015

PSYCHIATRIC MORBIDITY RESPONSIBLE FOR PREDISPOSING INDIVIDUAL FOR HIV INFECTION

Dr Shrikant Shankar Meshram

Abstract :

Background: The prevalence of HIV among people who are having psychiatric morbidity is higher than general population rates worldwide. Many risk behavior among individual with psychiatric morbidity has been identified in studies from both developed and developing countries, though sampling limitation restrict the generalizability of their result. Objective: The purpose of the current study is to investigate the prevalence and correlates of risk behavior among patients with psychiatric disorder and patients with alcohol or drug abuse problem in India. Method: To obtain a representative sample, we screened 107 newly diagnosed HIV individuals from Integrated counseling and testing center (ICTC) for information regarding risk behavior as well as its demographic, psychiatric, personality and substance use correlates. Result: In males substance abuse (23.36 %) was found to be most common psychiatric morbidity followed by substance abuse comorbid with axis I psychiatric diagnosis (17.75 %). Among the individual having psychiatric morbidity, 70.9 % of them having history of multiple sex partner, 22.42 % of them never use barrier method while having sexual activity, 32.71 % of them having history of sexual exposure with commercial sex worker. Discussion: Individuals with psychiatric morbidity are known to indulge in risk taking behavior due to impulsivity, inability to delay gratification and diminished judgment and insight. This may affect various area of life including substance use, sexual behavior and relational problems. Therefore these individuals may indulge in unsafe sexual practices leading to the sexually transmitted infection and contracting HIV infection. Study revealed that substance abuse and mood disorder were most common axis I psychiatric diagnosis among males in present study.