Detecting quality of life alterations in people living with HIV: Development and evaluation of the OCTAVE® self-questionnaire.

BACKGROUND

Complementarily to immuno-virological control of people living with HIV (PLWH), quality of life (QoL) has become a priority in patient care.

METHODS

OCTAVE® is a self-administered questionnaire comprising 42 questions categorized in eight items: HIV treatment, mental & physical health, sleep, sexuality, emotional well-being, comorbidities and social/professional life. It was developed for use in routine clinical practice, the objective being to identify possible QoL alterations in people living with HIV.

OUTCOMES: Thirty-nine physicians completed the survey, and 380 PLWH filled out the self-administered questionnaire. All in all, QoL alterations were detected in 44 % of respondents (mean 2.1 (SD = 1.2) per PLWH). For physicians, these findings prompted planned clinical interventions in 70 % of PLWH, predominantly regarding sleep, sexual health and emotional well-being. Of note, 11 % of the reported QoL alterations were attributed to antiretroviral therapy.

CONCLUSION

In routine clinical practice OCTAVE®, appears to be an effective means of detecting QoL impairments in people living with HIV, and it is likely to reinforce clinical management of potential QoL issues.