Quality of life of HIV+ patients undergoing pharmacotherapeutic follow-up

Abstract

The influence of pharmacotherapeutic follow-up (PTF) on quality of life was evaluated in 45 HIV+ patients, who were undergoing initial antiretroviral therapy at a specialized care center in northeast Brazil. PTF lasted nine months and quality of life was analyzed at the 1st and 9th meetings using a questionnaire validated for Brazil. The study identified 643 problems related to antiretrovirals and there were 590 pharmaceutical interventions during the PTF. The comparative analysis between the results of the 1st and the 9th meeting was statistically significant for all domains of the questionnaire. For asymptomatic patients, only one domain was statistically significant. For symptomatic patients, six domains were significant. Patients with one year of HIV/AIDS diagnosis had statistically significant differences in five domains. The results suggest that the PTF contributed to improving quality of life, particularly for symptomatic patients and those diagnosed for at least one year – important target groups for Pharmaceutical Treatment.