Impacts of a Therapeutic Food Supplement Support Program on Nutritional and Health Outcomes in HIV/AIDS Patient

Previous studies have suggested that therapeutic food supplement programs (TSFP) play significant roles in the management of adult wasting, especially in persons living with HIV/AIDS, and is effective in improving their health and nutritional status. This research examined the impacts of taking therapeutic food supplements on nutritional status, food security, disease stage, and health-related lifestyle characteristics of people living with HIV/AIDS who are under antiretroviral treatment (ART).;A total of 366 cases of HIV/AIDS diagnosed between February 2016 and February 2017 were identified from a hospital in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. In this study only 24% of the subjects had access to the therapeutic food supplement program (TFSP). Subjects were aged 18 years or more, on ART, and resident in the study area for at least one year prior to the time of the study. Pregnant and breast feeding woman were excluded.;Data such as biochemical measures, ART drug type and initiation date, therapeutic food supplement (TFS) type and initiation date, and anthropometric measures were retrieved from the Hospital's paper and electronic data base. Additionally, each participant was interviewed to provide information on adherence to the TFS, lifestyle characteristics, socio-demographic characteristics, and food security status.;Results indicated that the majority of the TFSP participants were female (68.2%); younger adults aged between 30--49 years (74.8%), married (45%), less educated (high school diploma or lower levels of education - 95.6%), unemployed (62.5%), and had low monthly incomes (less than $45.00 US dollars - 76.1%). Approximately 88.7% percent of the TFSP participants and 69.1% of the Non-TFSP participants were food insecure. The percentage of severe malnutrition (BMI<16.0 kg/m2) within the TFSP participants dropped from baseline (19.3%), to six months (8.0%), and twelve months (10.2%). There were no significant differences in CD4 cell count between the TFSP and Non-TFSP groups during the study periods. However, the percentages of TFSP participants whose CD4 cell counts were greater than or equal to 500cells/microl improved from 25.8% at baseline, to 52.2% at six months, and 53.3% at twelve months.;A randomized control trial, using larger sample sizes, is recommended to further investigate the impacts of TFSPs on nutrition and health outcomes of HIV/AIDS patients.