Prevalence and correlates of herbal medicine use among Anti-Retroviral Therapy (ART) clients at Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital (QECH), Blantyre Malawi: a cross-sectional study

BACKGROUND: There has been an unprecedented explosion in the popularity of herbal preparations during the last few decades. Herbal medicines are commonly used by HIV/AIDs clients. There is limited data on the prevalence of herbal medicine and correlating factors of herbal medicine use in Malawi. This study establishes prevalence and factors contributing to the use of herbal medicine among HIV/AIDS clients attending the ART clinic at QECH, Blantyre Malawi. METHODS: A cross-sectional study design was used to interview 211 conveniently sampled clients at QECH ART clinic. The questionnaire addressed socio-demographic, clinical characteristics, NCD-HIV comorbidity, and herbal medicine utilization. The main outcome of the study was herbal medicine use since the initiation of ART. Logistic regression analysis was done in Stata version 16. Both unadjusted and adjusted models were fitted for potential confounders. RESULTS: The prevalence of use of herbal medicine was reported in 17.5% (n=37) of the ART clients. The adjusted logistic regression analysis showed that urban residence was statistically associated with reduced use of herbal medicine (adjusted Odds Ratio – AOR: 0.04, 95% CI: 0.169, 0.976). CONCLUSION: There is a high prevalence of use of herbal medicine among clients taking ART. Herbal Medicine has the potential to cover the gaps in health coverage in rural communities.