FACTORS ASSOCIATED WITH SURVIVAL OF HIV/HBV CO-INFECTED PATIENTS IN UGANDA

This study was to identify factors that affect survival of HIV/HBV co-infected patients. Data from TASO Uganda was used, and patients who registered with TASO between 2005 and 2010 were followed to determine their survival. The covariates of study were social-demographic and clinical factors. To estimate the survival function for every subgroup of each variable, the product- limit method developed by Kaplan and Meier was used and a log rank test to compare the survivorship functions across several groups. A proportional hazards model was used to examine the joint effect of the covariates on the duration of survival assuming a Gompertz distribution for the time variable. Results revealed the duration of survival for HIV/HBV co-infected patients increased with increasing weight. Patients who had Hepatocellular carcinoma or Cirrhosis at diagnosis were at an increased risk of death as compared to those who had chronic active hepatitis B. Patients on ARVs had an increased death rate as compared to their counter parts. Educated patients had a reduced death rate as compared to the uneducated ones. Therefore, emphasis should be on designing Information Education Communication (IEC) materials to sensitize the uneducated HIV/HBV co-infected patients on effects of non compliance and unbalanced diets.