Abstract
BACKGROUND: The use of herbal medicine is common among HIV/AIDS patients due to chronic nature of the disease. However, the data are scarce on the extent of herbal medicine use and associated factors among HIV/AIDS patients while on antiretroviral therapy (ART) in Ethiopia. PURPOSE: To assess the extent of herbal medicine use and associated factors among people living with HIV/AIDS on ART in Tikur Anbessa Specialized Hospital, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. METHODS: A cross-sectional study design was conducted from February to June 2019. Patients were interviewed face to face using a structured questionnaire. Binary analysis using a chi-square test was used to determine the independent association of herbal medicine use to demographic and clinical characteristics, and multivariate analysis using binary logistic regression was done to identify predictability of herbal medicine use adjusted for other factors. RESULTS: A total of 318 participants were included in this study of which 26.1% of patients have used herbal medicines while on ART. The common herbal medicines used by participants were garlic (Allium stadium) 37.35% and Damakase (Ocimum lumiifolium) 22.9%. Most participants (60%) used herbal medicine for the treatment of opportunistic infections. The independent predictors for herbal medicine use were female gender (P=0.04; AOR 1.99, 95% CI 1.02-3.88), age above 60 (P=0.046; AOR 2.79, 95% CI 1.02-7.65), history of experiencing OIs (p=0.02; AOR 2.02, 95% CI 1.12-3.65) and developing side effects from ART (p=0.001; AOR 2.80, 95% CI 1.55-5.10). CONCLUSION: A considerable proportion of HIV/AIDS patients used herbal medicine concomitantly with ART at TASH, Ethiopia. The determinant factors for use of herbal medicine were female gender, age above 60, experiencing OIs and developing side effects from ART.