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Understanding the Stigma Experience of Men Living with HIV in Sub-Saharan Africa: A Qualitative Meta-synthesis

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Abstract

Men living with HIV (MLWH) in sub-Saharan Africa experience poor health outcomes and increased AIDS-related deaths due to stigma influencing testing and treatment uptake and adherence. PRISMA 2020 was used to report a meta-synthesis of the stigma experiences of MLWH in SSA. With the help of an expert librarian, a search of six databases was formulated and performed to examine the available qualitative and mixed method studies with qualitative results relevant to the research question. Studies focused on adult men living with HIV, with five studies specifically examining the HIV experience of men who have sex with men. Study themes were synthesized to describe MLWH’s perceived, internalized, anticipated, enacted, and intersectional stigma experiences. Most studies included masculinity as a key theme that affected both testing and treatment adherence upon diagnosis. Future research is needed to better understand subpopulations, such as men who have sex with men living with HIV, and what interventions may be beneficial to mitigate the disparities among MLWH in SSA.

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Acknowledgements

The manuscript was supported by the Fogarty International Center/National Institutes of Health through Award Number R21TW011247 (M. Relf, Contact MPI/L. Nyblade, MPI) and the Duke University Center for AIDS Research (CFAR), an NIH funded program (5P30AI064518). The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.

Funding

Research reported in this publication was supported by the Fogarty International Center of the National Institutes for Health under award R21TW012007 and by the Duke Center for AIDS Research, a National Institutes of Health funded program under award number 5P30AI064518. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.

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  1. School of Nursing, Duke University, 307 Trent Drive, Box 3322, Durham, NC, 27710, USA

    Sarah E. Janek & Michael V. Relf

  2. Duke Global Health Institute, Durham, NC, USA

    Sandy Hatoum & Michael V. Relf

  3. Medical Center Library, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA

    Leila Ledbetter

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All authors on this paper meet the four criteria for authorship as identified by the International Committee of Medical Journal Editors; all authors have contributed to the drafting or been involved in revising it, reviewed the final version of this manuscript before submission, and agree to be accountable for all aspects of the work. Specifically, using the CRediT taxonomy, the specific contribution of each author is as follows: Conceptualization & Methodology: S. Janek, L. Ledbetter, M. Relf. Formal Analysis: S. Hatoum, S. Janek, M. Relf. Funding Acquisition: M. Relf. Investigation: S. Hatoum, S. Janek, L. Ledbetter, M. Relf. Methodology: S. Janek, L. Ledbetter, M. Relf. Project administration: M. Relf. Supervision: M. Relf. Verification: S. Hatoum, S. Janek, M. Relf. Writing—manuscript draft: S. Janek. Writing—review & editing: S. Hatoum, S. Janek, L. Ledbetter, M. Relf.

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Registration The protocol that guided this meta-synthesis was prospectively registered with Prospero (registration ID: CRD42022315871).

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Janek, S.E., Hatoum, S., Ledbetter, L. et al. Understanding the Stigma Experience of Men Living with HIV in Sub-Saharan Africa: A Qualitative Meta-synthesis. AIDS Behav (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10461-024-04329-8

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