Evaluating Quality of Life and Marital Contentment among Seroconcordant and Serodiscordant HIV-Infected Couples in Comparison to Non- HIV Couples

BACKGROUND: Quality of life (QOL) and marital contentment, especially marital satisfaction, are important aspects of life. These items are more important in couples involved in HIV due to the present social stigma among this population considering women more vulnerable. The aim of this study was to determine the QOL and marital contentment status among seroconcordant and serodiscordant HIV couples compared to non-HIV ones. METHODS: In this cross-sectional study, 66 serodiscordant, 74 seroconcordant, and 70 non-HIV couples who referred to Lavan High-risk Behavior Counseling Center, Shiraz during September 2017 and December 2019 were studied. QOL and marital contentment were assessed by World Health Organization Quality of Life-BRIEF (WHOQOL BREF) and ENRICH questionnaire, respectively. Chi-square test for qualitative variables, independent T-test and ANOVA followed by LSD post hoc test for quantitative variables were performed. All statistical analyses were performed using SPSS 19.0, and P<0.05 was set as the significant level. RESULTS: The score of QOL questionnaire was significantly higher in non-HIV couples than serodiscordant and seroconcordant groups (P<0.001). There was no significant difference among seroconcordant and serodiscordant groups (P=0.99), and infected males vs. females (P=0.13). Non-HIV couples had significantly higher marital contentment in comparison to serodiscordant and seroconcordant groups (P<0.001). No difference was detected among seroconcordant and serodiscordant groups (P=0.81) although more contentment was observed among the males (P=0.01). CONCLUSION: Our study revealed that QOL and marital contentment were different among non-HIV and HIV infected couples. Besides, marital contentment was higher among males than female’s in infected patients.