What are the common causes of chronic fatigue in patients with HIV?
Fatigue can have a large impact on the quality of a patient’s life. Common descriptors of fatigue include tiredness, weakness, lack of energy, sleepiness, and exhaustion. Of the many possible causes of chronic fatigue in patients with HIV, the most common is depression. Other psychosocial causes include stress, anxiety, use of recreational substances, sleep disturbances, domestic abuse, and lack of exercise. ODs must be considered as a possible cause of fatigue in patients with low CD4 cell counts. Other disease states such as anemia, hypothyroidism, hypogonadism, adrenal insufficiency, influenza and other non-opportunistic infections, diabetes, liver disease, and malnutrition can also present as fatigue. Fatigue can be a side effect of ART and other medications commonly taken by patients with HIV. HIV-associated fatigue is a diagnosis of exclusion. How do you determine the cause of a patient’s fatigue? Ask if the patient is having other symptoms of depression: change in sleep or appet
