HIV, Social Networks, and Loneliness among Older Adults in Uganda

Published in AIDS and Behavior. Here is a link to the article.

Regenstrief Institute author: Meredith Greene, M.D.

This study examined loneliness among older adults with and without HIV in rural Uganda. While older adults with HIV had smaller social networks and less support, their reported loneliness levels were similar to those without HIV. Loneliness was linked to living alone, while marriage and greater social integration reduced loneliness. The findings suggest that resilience and access to HIV-related health services may buffer loneliness among older adults with HIV, though further research is needed to understand underlying mechanisms.

Authors

Lien T Quach ^{1 2 3 4 5 6}, Christine S Ritchie ^{7 8 9}, Zahra Reynolds ¹⁰, Robert Paul ¹¹, Janet Seeley ¹², Yao Tong ¹⁰, Susanne Hoeppner ^{9 13}, Samson Okello ^{14 15}, Noeline Nakasujja ¹⁶, Brianne Olivieri-Mui ¹⁷, Deanna Saylor ¹⁸, Meredith Greene ¹⁹, Stephen Asiimwe ^{10 14 20}, Edna Tindimwebwa ²⁰, Flavia Atwiine ¹⁴, Ruth Sentongo ¹⁴, Mark J Siedner ^{10 9 14}, Alexander C Tsai ^{9 13 14}

Affiliations

¹Medical Practice Evaluation Center, Mongan Institute, Department of Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA.

²Centre for Aging and Serious Illness, Mongan Institute, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA.

³Division of Palliative Care and Geriatric Medicine, Department of Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, USA.

⁴Department of Gerontology, University of Massachusetts Boston, Boston, MA, USA.

⁵Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.

⁶The Massachusetts Veterans Epidemiology Research and Information Center, VA Boston Healthcare System, Boston, USA.

⁷Centre for Aging and Serious Illness, Mongan Institute, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA.

⁸Division of Palliative Care and Geriatric Medicine, Department of Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, USA.

9Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.

¹⁰Medical Practice Evaluation Center, Mongan Institute, Department of Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA.

¹¹Department of Psychological Sciences, University of Missouri at St. Louis, St. Louis, USA.

¹²Department of Global Health and Development, Faculty of Public Health and Policy, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, London, UK.

¹³Department of Psychiatry, Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA.

¹⁴Mbarara University of Science and Technology, Mbarara, Uganda.

¹⁵Department of Epidemiology, Gillings School of Global Public Health, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, USA.

¹⁶Department of Psychiatry, College of Health Sciences, Makerere University School of Medicine, Kampala, Uganda.

¹⁷Department of Health Sciences, Bouvé College of Health Sciences, Northeastern University, Boston, MA, USA.

¹⁸Department of Neurology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA.

¹⁹Department of Medicine, Indiana University School of Medicine and Indiana University Center for Aging Research, Regenstreif Institute, Inc., Indianapolis, IN, USA.

²⁰Kabwohe Clinical Research Center, Kabwohe, Uganda.