HIV-associated dementia in the Dominican Republic: a consequence of stigma, domestic abuse and limited health literacy.

A 38-year-old Dominican woman presented at an infectious disease clinic in Santo Domingo, with subacute dementia and psychomotor slowing. Based on physical findings and laboratory results, she was diagnosed with AIDS and HIV-associated dementia (HAD). She subsequently began combined antiretroviral therapy (cART). Psychiatric complications later emerged: the patient developed suicidal ideation and her partner expressed homicidal thoughts. After extensive interviewing, it was revealed that the patient had known her HIV-positive serostatus for years. However, several factors, including HIV stigma, mental illness stigma, domestic abuse and limited health literacy, had prevented her from seeking treatment and from disclosing her status to her partner. This patient's HIV was unmanaged as a consequence of social and educational circumstance, which resulted in severe sequelae, namely HAD. Compounded barriers to care can lead to the presentation of disease complications that are rarely seen today in countries with widespread access to antiretroviral therapy.