Prevalence and determinants of undernutrition among adults living with HIV in Ethiopia : A systematic review and meta-analysis

Background: Undernutrition among HIV-positive adults in Ethiopia highlights the cycle of cause-and-effect relationships between undernutrition and HIV infection. Aim: The study aimed to assess the prevalence of undernutrition and its determinants among HIV-positive adults in Ethiopia. Methods: Intensive searches were carried out utilizing PubMed, EMBASE (Elsevier), Cochrane, and other electronic databases such as ScienceDirect, African Journal Online (AJOL), Google Scholar, and gray literature. Data synthesis/findings: A total sample size of 5,648 and a total number of undernourished individuals of 1,474 from 11 articles met the inclusion criteria. The study found that the pooled prevalence of 26.70% (95% CI: 21.31%, 32.10%) of HIV-positive patients in Ethiopia are undernourished. Factors determining undernutrition include having opportunistic infections (OR: 3.496, 95% CI 1.776-5.217), being at an advanced WHO clinical stage II or above (OR: 2.916, 95% CI 1.088-4.744), having a cluster differentiation (CD4) count below 200 cells (OR: 3.099, 95% CI 1.418-4.779), and food insecurity (OR: 3.352, 95% CI 1.418-5.287). Conclusion: The systematic review and meta-analysis found that Ethiopia's HIV-positive population faces high undernutrition rates in comparison to studies done in sub-Saharan Africa. Opportunistic infections, advanced WHO clinical disease stage, CD4 counts below 200 cells/mm³, and food insecurity were identified as statistically significant factors determining the high prevalence of undernutrition. This suggests a cyclic link between undernutrition and health outcomes. The meta-analysis identifies factors influencing undernutrition in Ethiopia's HIV-positive population, but more research is needed to determine the efficacy of interventions and address root causes.