Patrick Lasowski
Nominated From: University of Washington
Research Site: Hospital Cayetano, Universidad Peruano Cayetano Heredia
Research Area: Mental Health
Primary Mentors: Dr. Ann Duerr and Dr. Luis Menacho
Research Project
Chronic pain and mental health among people living with HIV in Lima, Peru
Mental health disorders and chronic pain are among the most prevalent HIV-related comorbidities in people living with HIV (PLWH). Unfortunately, mental health disorders are under-diagnosed and under-treated in PLWH, especially in low and middle income countries (LMICS) such as Peru. Chronic and acute pain, like mental health disorders, is common in PLWH at all stages of the disease, and is also under-diagnosed and universally under-treated. Mental health disorders and chronic pain have each been shown to be associated with worse HIV treatment outcomes among people living with HIV. This study will assess the burden of mental health disorders and pain among people living with HIV in Lima and the relationships between mental health disorders, pain and HIV treatment outcomes among people living with HIV in Lima.
Research Significance
The Peruvian ministry of Health has recently initialized a program to integrate mental care into community and primary healthcare settings. No such integration has happened in the public HIV clinics serving many of the city’s most vulnerable residents. The prevalence of both mental health disorders and chronic pain among people living with HIV in Peru has not been well described, especially with regarded to the growing population of Venezuelan refugees living with HIV in Lima. This study seeks to characterize the prevalence of pain and mental health disorders among each of the three primary populations of people living with HIV in Lima: Peruvian men who have sex with men (MSM), Peruvian transgender women (TW), and Venezuelan migrants, and to interview key stakeholders in the Peruvian HIV/AIDS treatment system to inform future integration of mental health care and pain treatment programs into HIV/AIDS care at public HIV clinics in Lima.
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