The magnitude of, and factors associated with, loss to follow-up among patients treated for sexually transmitted infections: a multilevel analysis

Abstract

Objectives The loss to follow-up (LTFU) among patients attending care for sexually transmitted infections (STIs) in Sub-Saharan Africa is a major barrier to achieving the goals of the STI prevention and control programme. The objective of this study was to investigate individual- and facility-level factors associated with LTFU among patients treated for STIs in Ethiopia. Methods A prospective cohort study was conducted among patients attending care for STIs in selected facilities from January to June 2015 in the Tigray region of Ethiopia. LTFU was ascertained if a patient did not present in person to the same facility within 7 days of the initial contact. Multilevel logistic regression was used to identify factors associated with LTFU. results Out of 1082 patients, 59.80% (647) were LTFU. The individual-level factors associated with LTFU included having multiple partners (adjusted OR (AOR) 2.89, 95% CI 1.74 to 4.80), being male (AOR 2.23, 95% CI 1.63 to 3.04), having poor knowledge about the means of STI transmission (AOR 2.08, 95% CI 1.53 to 2.82), having college level education (AOR 0.38, 95% CI 0.22 to 0.65), and low perceived stigma (AOR 0.60, 95% CI 0.43 to 0.82). High patient flow (AOR 3.06, 95% CI 1.30 to 7.18) and medium health index score (AOR 2.80, 95% CI 1.28 to 6.13) were facility-level factors associated with LTFU. conclusions Improving patient retention in STI followup care requires focused interventions targeting those who are more likely to be LTFU, particularly patients with multiple partners, male index cases and patients attending facilities with high patient flow.