Why increasing availability of ART is not enough: a rapid community-based study on how HIV-related stigma impacts engagement to care in rural South Africa

摘要

BackgroundStigma is a known barrier to HIV testing and care. Because access to antiretroviral therapy reduces overt illness and mortality, some scholars theorized that HIV-related stigma would decrease as treatment availability increased. However, the association between ART accessibility and stigma has not been as straightforward as originally predicted.