Depression, Anxiety and Stress among HIV Patients in East Coast Malaysia

Introduction: HIV infection is a chronic disease with multiple challenges that could affect the psychological well-being of patients. Objective: The objective of this research was to determine the prevalence of depression, anxiety and stress among HIV patients and its significant associated factors. Methodology: This is a cross-sectional study which was carried out in two health centers in a town in the East Coast of peninsular Malaysia. A total of 42 patients with HIV were recruited via convenience sampling. Those who fulfilled the inclusion and exclusion criteria completed a validated set of Malay version of DASS-21 questionnaire. Data was analyzed using IBM SPSS Statistics. Results: The prevalence of depression, anxiety and stress among adult HIV patients in community follow-up were 33.3%, 28.6% and 21.4% respectively. Marital status was significantly associated with both depression and stress. While CD4 count was found to be significantly associated with anxiety.