British Columbia study underscores need for mental health services for HIV-positive people

  • B.C. researchers compared health records of HIV-positive and HIV-negative patients.
  • HIV-positive patients were twice as likely to be diagnosed with a mood disorder.
  • Age, sexuality and injection drug use were associated with mental health diagnoses.

At least several studies have found that mental health conditions are more common among HIV-positive people than HIV-negative people. Some of these conditions include the following:

  • anxiety
  • depression
  • bipolar depression
  • schizoaffective disorders
  • post-traumatic stress disorders

It is possible that biological, psychological and/or socio-economic factors play a role in the heightened risk for at least some of these mental health conditions. If mental health conditions are left undiagnosed, untreated or poorly managed, they can degrade overall health, quality of life and, in some cases, the ability to take HIV treatment (ART) exactly as directed.

Researchers at the BC Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS and at the University of British Columbia and Simon Fraser University collaborated in a study to compare rates of mental health conditions (also called major mood disorders) between HIV-positive and HIV-negative people. They found that, overall, rates of diagnosed mental health conditions were twice as high among HIV-positive people. The researchers found that HIV-positive people who had milder forms of mental health conditions and/or substance use were likely to subsequently develop more serious mental health problems. The researchers stated that these and other findings from their study “highlight the need for comprehensive and holistic HIV and mental health care.”

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During the Canada Post strike announced September 25, 2025, the following measures will be undertaken to minimize service disruption to BC-CfE clients and providers.

  • The BC-CfE Laboratory has transitioned to private courier for delivery of outgoing reports and documents. Results required urgently can be faxed upon request. (Lab Contact Information: Phone 604-806-8775; FAX 604-806-9463)
  • The BC-CfE Drug Treatment Program (DTP) will fax outgoing forms and documents to the provider’s office. (DTP Contact Information: Phone 604-806-8515; FAX 604-806-9044)
  • St. Paul’s Hospital Ambulatory Pharmacy has transitioned to private courier for delivery of medications. We recommend requesting medication at least 2 weeks in advance in case of delivery delays, particularly to rural/remote parts of BC. (Contact Information: Phone 1-800-547-3622; FAX 604-806-8675)

During the Canada Post strike, we recommend that documents be faxed or couriered to our sites, versus utilization of regular mail service

The BC-CfE Laboratory is streamlining reporting processes for certain tests in order to simplify distribution and record-keeping, and to ensure completeness of results. Beginning September 2, 2025, results for the ‘Resistance Analysis of HIV-1 Protease and Reverse Transcriptase’ (Protease-RT) and ‘HIV-1 Integrase Resistance Genotype’ tests will be combined into a single ‘HIV-1 Resistance Genotype Report’.
For more details and example reports, please click on the button below