Effects of Positive HIV Status Disclosure on Sexual Behaviour Change

Abstract

Introduction: Disclosure of HIV serostatus is critical to controlling the spread of HIV, and understanding the experience for disclosure enhances the development of prevention interventions and ultimately leads to better control of the spread of the disease. The present narrative review aimed to synthesize literature on the effects of positive HIV status disclosure on sexual behaviour change. Method: A narrative review design was utilized. Literature search of articles was from the following databases; Scopus, Science Direct, PUBMED, OVID and Google scholar. The searches were conducted from August 2019 to June 2020. The qualitative analysis was used to presented data into themes. Results: The main findings were discussed under four thematic domains: 1) disclosure, 2) number of sexual partners, 3) type of sexual partners and 4) use condoms. Conclusion: The narrative review presents evidence on; how patients revealing their HIV positive status to their sexual partner(s), family members, or others in their social circle are associated to better, less risky sexual behaviors. This finding implies that when people living with HIV disclose their status, they are most likely to; 1) have less sexual partners, 2) use condoms and 3) minimize casual/temporary sex. The behavior change brought by the positive HIV status disclosure can significantly reduce the transmission of HIV within the society.