Some Aspects of Pain among Patients Attending the AIDS clinics of Mulago Hospital and the AIDS support Organisation (TASO) Mulago.

Abstract

Some Aspects of pain among patients attending the AIDS clinics of Mulago Hospital and the AIDS support organization (TASO) Mulago. BACKGROUND: Pain is one of the major causes of morbidity in HIV/AIDS patients attending the AIDS clinic of new Mulago and TASO Mulago centre. However, its prevalence and impact on the quality of life of these patients is not known. Nevertheless. Both unpublished and published work on HIV related pain in Africa shows that it is highly prevalence.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of the study was to estimate the prevalence of pain among HIV/AIDS patients attending the AIDS clinics of Mulago Hospital and TASO Mulago. To describe the different types of pain patients present with anatomically and path physiologically. To assess the effect of severe pain on quality of life in patients with HIV/AIDS attending the two clinics. DESIGN: A descriptive cross sectional study was carried on HIV/AIDS patients of 18 years and above who freely reported pain as one of their presenting complaint. Consenting patients had their serology for HIV done and a brief pain inventory was to used to measure their pain status and areas of interference with daily activities of life. Main measures were demographic characteristics, HIV serostatus, severity, types and effect of pain on quality of life. RESULTS: Between November 2000- February 2001, a total of 1,200 seropositive patients were screened. Of the 1,200 patients, 256 (21%) freely reported pain as one of their presenting complaints and 206 (97%) of those who presented with pain were recruited in the study. Of the 206 who presented with pain, 115 (58.5%) reported severe pain. Most patients 117 (56.8%) had somatic pain, 49 (23.8%) had visceral pain and 40 (19.4%) had neuropathic pain. The majority of patients 94 (45.6%) had WHO clinical stage iii of HIV. The more severe pain was, the worse was the interference with quality of life, p-value:, 0.0001. CONCLUSIONS: 1.The prevalence of pain in our study was estimated at 21% of all HIV seropositive patients. The prevalence of severe pain among HIV/AIDS payients who presented with pain in ISS clinic and TASO Mulago clinic was 58.5%. 2.Somatic pain was the most common form of pain presentation . There was no signficant statistical difference between severity of pain and nature of pain. 3. There is severe interference with quality of life in patients who have severe pain with HIV/AIDS with mean rating interference p- value < 0.0001. 4. The majority of patients with HIV/AIDS (67%) werw not on any pain medication. 5.Aetiology could not be defined for most forms of pain. 6. There was no statistically significant relationship between severity of pain and basic demographic variables.