Partner Serostatus and Disclosure Stigma: Implications for Physical and Mental Health Outcomes Among HIV-positive Adults

This pilot project examined the interaction between partners' serostatus and HIV disclosure-stigma in determining physical and mental health. Participants were 38 sexually active HIV-positive adults. Over 47% of participants reported exclusively seroconcordant partners in the past 30 days. There were no main effects of partner serostatus or disclosure stigma on any of the outcome variables. However, disclosure stigma moderated the relationship between partner serostatus and: number of symptoms reported, pain, physical functioning, quality of life, anxiety, illness intrusiveness, and role-functioning. Future research should explore the implications of partner serostatus for the physical and mental health of HIV-positive individuals.