ASSOCIATIONS OF HEALTH-RELATED QUALITY OF LIFE AMONG ADOLESCENTS LIVING WITH HIV IN INDIA

Health related quality of life (HRQOL) studies in general and in HIV, in particular, have been rare in Indian adolescents and have been mainly undertaken in western countries. Further, HRQOL studies mostly merge adolescents with children or adults and thus fail to identify priorities specifically for adolescents. Adolescents living with HIV are an inadequately studied vulnerable group with poor quality of life not only in physical but also psychological domain and need medical care as well as support from community. Our study a cross-sectional, observational questionnaire-based study, conducted at ART clinic of a tertiary care hospital, Delhi was aimed to fill this gap by assessing the quality of life of adolescents living with HIV and to assess the factors associated with Health related quality of life using WHOQOLBREF. In our study score was highest in psychological domain and lowest in environment domain. Female gender and poor nutritional status were found to be associated with the poor Health related quality of life. Our study emphasizes the need for adherence to HAART regimens, gender equality, reduced inequalities and adequate nutritional support in national programs to achieve zero hunger with special focus on adolescents living with HIV can go a long way in improving their health-related quality of life.