Prevalence, severity and associated risk factors of anemia among human immunodeficiency virus-infected adults in Sawla General Hospital, Southern Ethiopia: A facility-based cross-sectional study

by Rishan Hadgu, Ahmed Husen, Esayas Milkiyas, Niguse Alemayoh, Robel Zemoy, Azene Tesfaye, Dagimawie Tadesse, Aseer Manilal, Aklilu Alemayehu

Anemia is a significant public health problem in HIV/AIDS patients worldwide. This study is aimed to determine the prevalence of anemia and its risk factors among HIV-infected adults in Sawla General Hospital, southern Ethiopia.

A facility-based cross-sectional study involving HIV-infected adults was conducted in ART clinic of Sawla General Hospital from April 01 to May 31, 2019. A systematic random sampling technique was employed to recruit the study participants. Socio-demographic and clinical data were collected using a structured questionnaire and checklist. Hemoglobin concentration from venous blood was determined by HemoCue^® 301 analyzer. Descriptive and inferential statistics, by Statistical Package for Social Science version 26.0, were applied; p-values ≤ 0.05 in the multivariable logistic regression analysis were considered statistically significant.

A total of 220 HIV-infected adults participated in this study. The prevalence of anemia was 38.6%, from which 90.6, 7.1, and 2.3% are mild, moderate, and severe anemia, respectively. Anemia among HIV-infected adults was significantly associated with CD₄ cell count below 200 cells/mm³ (AOR: 4.32; 95% CI: 2.10–8.86), clinical stage III or above (AOR: 4.20; 95% CI: 1.06–16.62), five or more years duration of HIV infection (AOR: 2.32; 95% CI: 1.08–4.94) and BMI below 18.5 kg/m² (AOR: 3.82; 95% CI: 1.83–8.00).

Anemia is a moderate public health problem among the study population. Longer duration of HIV infection, advanced clinical stage, lower CD₄ cell count, and BMI are risk factors for anemia. Therefore, early ART enrolment for HIV-infected adults with nutritional support and rigorous monitoring of CD₄ cell count are essential to lower the prevalence.