It's the Mind, Not the HIV

Psychological factors--not the use of antiretroviral medications or advanced HIV disease--are the cause of most cases of fatigue among HIVers, researchers wrote in the September edition of HIV Medicine. Questionnaires given to 148 London HIV patients revealed no association between antiretroviral therapy or advanced HIV disease progression and fatigue. However, such factors as stress, anxiety, and depression were strongly linked. The researchers said their findings suggest that doctors should carefully screen their HIV patients complaining of fatigue for underlying psychological conditions.