Prevalence of Depression Among People Living with HIV on Antiretroviral Therapy in Africa: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

Dimakatso M Molapo, Kabelo Mokgalaboni, Wendy N Phoswa

Abstract readReview

In one paragraph

Review in Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland), 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 7 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it

0cells of the map it votes in

7citing papers in PubMed

–field-weighted citation impact

1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

7 citing papers in PubMed.

Bridging the gap: to what extent are mental health services available in HIV Care and Treatment Centres in Tanzania? A cross-sectional facility-based baseline survey.BMJ open · 2026
Article
Distinct acute and chronic brain health phenotypes among people living with HIV in a Ugandan clinical cohort: a comorbidity network analysis.Research square · 2026
Article
Adaptation of Inuka coaching problem-solving therapy to support mental health and HIV medication adherence among status-neutral men who have sex with men in South Africa.International health · 2026
Article
Establishing an empirical cut-off on the 12-item Brief Berger HIV Stigma Scale to screen psychosocial vulnerability among PLHIV in Nigeria.PLOS global public health · 2026
Article
Southern African HIV Clinicians Society clinical guideline for the management of older people with HIV.Southern African journal of HIV medicine · 2026
Article
Behavioral Predictors of Intentional and Unintentional Nonadherence to Antiretroviral Therapy and Their Implications for Virological Failure Among People with HIV in Taiwan.Viruses · 2025
Article
Depressive Symptoms and Clinical and Nutritional Outcomes among Adults Living with HIV Initiating Antiretroviral Therapy in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.Journal of the International Association of Providers of AIDS Care
Article

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

3 authors.

Dimakatso M MolapoDepartment of Life and Consumer Sciences, College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences, University of South Africa (UNISA), Science Campus, Private Bag X6, Florida, Roodepoort 1710, South Africa.

Kabelo MokgalaboniDepartment of Life and Consumer Sciences, College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences, University of South Africa (UNISA), Science Campus, Private Bag X6, Florida, Roodepoort 1710, South Africa.ORCID 0000-0002-3224-7433

Wendy N PhoswaDepartment of Life and Consumer Sciences, College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences, University of South Africa (UNISA), Science Campus, Private Bag X6, Florida, Roodepoort 1710, South Africa.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundHIV is a global health issue, with the highest number of infected individuals found in sub-Saharan Africa. The coexistence of HIV with depression is a huge challenge. This study aimed to investigate the prevalence of depression in people living with HIV (PLWHIV) who are on antiretroviral therapy (ART) in Africa.

methodPubMed, Scopus, and bibliographic screening were used to identify suitable literature. The study adhered to guidelines outlined by Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses. The Newcastle-Ottawa guideline was used to assess the quality of the included cross-sectional studies. Subgroup analysis and meta-regression were subsequently conducted following the meta-analyses, based on heterogeneity. A meta-analysis software online tool and Jamovi software (version 2.4.8.0) were used to analyse the data, and the results were presented as prevalence and 95% confidence intervals.

resultsThirty-four cross-sectional studies identified from the databases were deemed relevant. The overall sample size was 21,143 PLWHIV on ART in African countries. The analysed data showed the prevalence of depression to be 36%, with 95% CI (27% to 40%),

conclusionsOur findings show that there is a higher prevalence of depression among PLWHIV who are on ART in Africa. It is crucial to correctly recognise and provide proper care for depression to optimise HIV treatment and enhance treatment adherence in this population.

Indexed as

antiretroviral therapydepressionhuman immune deficiency virus

Identifiers

PMID39791692

DOI10.3390/healthcare13010085

PMCPMC11719924

What Socratic holds

Textmetadata

LicenceCC BY

Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.