The effects of alcohol use on people living with HIV/Aids: an integrative review

Abstract

The aim of this study was to analyze the scientific production on the effects of alcohol use on people with HIV/Aids. This is an integrative review carried out in October 2017 using the following databases: LILACS, SciELO, MEDLINE, CINAHL, Scopus, Cochrane and Web of Science. The descriptors "Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome", "HIV" and "Alcohol" were used in Portuguese, English and Spanish, with the Boolean operator "AND". A total of 2,355 articles were found, and 46 were selected for the study. The data were organized into four thematic categories: the effects of alcohol on adherence to antiretroviral therapy; neurological and metabolic effects of alcohol; increased risk of HIV transmission and disease progression. It is concluded that HIV/Aids and alcohol consumption have a synergistic effect on the lives of people with HIV, causing them greater health harm (with emphasis on neurological and metabolic alterations), low adherence to treatment, increased virus transmission and disease progression.