Olawepo JO, O'Brien K, Papasodoro J, et al.
Nigeria has one of the largest populations of people living with HIV globally, with the majority now on antiretroviral therapy, making retention in care essential to sustaining treatment gains. This systematic review and meta-analysis, following PRISMA 2020 guidelines, searched PubMed, Embase, PsycINFO, CINAHL, Global Index Medicus, and Cochrane Library for studies reporting antiretroviral therapy retention among people living with HIV in Nigeria, identifying 966 unique articles and including 52 studies comprising 56 study arms and 563,410 participants. The pooled retention rate was 72%, with Southeast Nigeria showing the highest regional retention at 86% and South-South Nigeria the lowest at 58%. The authors conclude that Nigeria's pooled retention rate remains below the UNAIDS 95% target, underscoring the need for improved retention models.
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