Assessment of quality of life in visceral leishmaniasis patients coinfected with HIV: a comparative study in Bihar, India

Background This study was aimed to evaluates the quality of life using WHOQOL-BREF in VL patients co-infected with HIV in Bihar, India.

Methods This cross-sectional study enrolled 240 participants: 60 HIV-VL co-infected, 60 HIV, 60 VL and 60 healthy individuals. Socio-demographic data and QOL assessments used the Hindi WHOQOL-BREF questionnaire. The data were compared using the chi-square test, One-Way ANOVA followed by Tukey’s post-hoc Test. Generalised linear regression was performed for analyses of predictors of QOL, as well as the socio-economic status was determined by using the Modifed Kuppuswamy socio-economic Scale 2022.

Results HIV-VL co-infected patients reported signifcantly lower QOL scores across all domains (physical, psychological, social relationships, and environmental) compared to healthy individuals (p < 0.05). Notably, psychological (12.17±1.17), social relationship (5.90±1.16), and environmental (14.10±1.68) domains were severely impacted in HIV-VL coinfection in contrast to HIV (p<0.05) and VL (p<0.05).

Conclusion HIV-VL co-infection profoundly afects quality of life, emphasizing the need for targeted interventions addressing psychological, social and environmental well-being. Future research should prioritize strategies improving QOL and assessing long-term treatment efects in HIV-VL co-infection