Explanation of treatment fatigue in MSM living with HIV: a comprehensive approach combining linear regression analyses, decision tree, and network analysis

Treatment fatigue in men who have sex with men (MSM) living with HIV have been documented in developed countries; there are still not many studies addressing this issue in China. Therefore, we aimed to investigate the current status of treatment fatigue among MSM living with HIV and identified associating factors. The data in this study were provided by the Population Health Data Archive. They were subjected to answering the general questionnaire and the HIV treatment regimen fatigue scale, the 20-item Toronto alexithymia scale, and the 6-item UCLA loneliness scale. Linear regression and decision tree model were used to identify associating factors. Network analysis was performed to construct the symptom network structure. A total of 739 MSM living with HIV from Harbin, China were included. The average score of treatment fatigue was -15.60 ± 22.49. The associating factors were age, household monthly income per capita, alexithymia and loneliness. Network analysis revealed that "Difficulty Identifying Feelings" and "Difficulty Describing Feelings" exhibited the strongest positive connection (weight = 0.483). Centrality metrics highlighted "Difficulty Identifying Feelings" as the most influential node (strength = 1.740, betweenness = 1.677). This study provides an in-depth integration of existing research on treatment fatigue among MSM living with HIV in China and suggests potential targets for MSM living with HIV, for the prevention, relief and cure of treatment fatigue.