Discrimination and the Mediating Role of Self-Esteem on Psychopathology and Retention in Care: A Cross-Sectional Study With People Living With HIV in Myanmar.

People living with HIV (PLHIV) in Myanmar endure a great deal of discrimination. However, self-esteem may serve as the mechanism that facilitates the impact of discrimination on poor health outcomes and behaviors in PLHIV. Our study aimed to quantitatively assess the mediating role of self-esteem in the atemporal associations between discrimination and two key health outcomes, psychopathology and retention in care, among PLHIV in Myanmar. Our cross-sectional study recruited 271 PLHIV through a quasirandom sampling method. Structural equation modeling was employed in R to examine the mediating pathways related to both outcomes of interest. The results revealed that self-esteem partially mediated the relationship with psychopathology but not the relationship with retention in care. The results call for broader multilevel interventions that address health needs and welfare within the complex geopolitical situation of Myanmar. Future tailored interventions may specifically target self-esteem within this population.