Determinants of viral load non-suppression among HIV-positive children and adolescents attending care and treatment clinics in Tabora region, Tanzania

Abstract

Socio-demographic characteristics of the study participants A total of 378 children and adolescents on ART were included in this study. Their median age was 6.0 (IQR 3,10) years and 126 (33.3%) were children (5–9 years old). More than half, 193 (51.1%) were male, and 231 (61.2%) were in either primary school or below (Table 1).Immunological and clinical characteristics of the study participants Of the 378 HIV-positive children and adolescents enrolled in this study, 124 (32.8%) had virological non-suppression and 22 (5.8%) had TB/HIV co-infection, 139 (36.8%) had a WHO clinical stage III at the time of ART initiation and 205 (54.2%) had a high CD4 count (CD4 count > 350 cells/mm3 for children above 5 years, and CD4% > 25% of total lymphocytes for children less than 5 years) based on a national guideline for the management of HIV/AIDS (NACP 2019a). Among the total, 231 (61.1%) had disclosed their HIV status and 124(32.8%) were virological non-suppressed (Table 2).