Antiretroviral therapy regimens and virological suppression among adults with HIV: a cross-sectional study at a health center, Vietnam in 2024

Human immunodeficiency virus and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) has remained a major global health concern since its initial discovery, exerting profound impacts on both the physical health and psychosocial well-being of affected individuals and their communities. Antiretroviral therapy (ART) is considered the cornerstone of HIV treatment, playing a critical role in improving patients’ quality of life and extending life expectancy. To assess the characteristics, antiretroviral (ARV) regimen distribution and virological suppression among outpatients undergoing HIV treatment at District 3 Health Center in 2024. A cross-sectional analytical study was conducted among people living with HIV receiving treatment at the Community Counseling and Support Unit for HIV/AIDS, District 3 Health Center, using data collected from participant questionnaires and retrospective clinical records. Among the 318 HIV patients surveyed, 96.23% were receiving first-line ARV regimens, while 3.77% were on second-line regimens. The TDF+3TC + DTG combination was the most commonly used regimen, accounting for 94.65% of cases. The findings showed that 98.69% of patients on first-line therapy and 91.67% of those on second-line therapy achieved virological suppression. Exploratory Firth penalized logistic regression showed nominal differences in virological non-suppression according to ethnicity, marital status, and same-sex relationship status. However, only five participants had virological non-suppression, and none of these comparisons remained statistically significant after adjustment for multiple testing. The prevalence of virological suppression was high, and most patients were receiving first-line ART, predominantly TDF+3TC + DTG. Larger studies with sufficient numbers of virological non-suppression events are needed to further investigate factors associated with virological outcomes. Not applicable.