Turkish infectious disease physicians’ perspectives on long-acting injectable ART: attitudes, readiness, and implementation challenges in a national survey

Long-actinginjectable antiretroviral therapies (LAI-ART) offer a promising approach toimproving treatment adherence by reducing dosing frequency, while decreasingstigma and enhancing the quality of life. Although LAI-ART is not yet availablein Turkey, its expected introduction highlights the importance of understandingthe perspectives of infectious disease physicians involved in HIV care. Thisstudy is the first nationwide investigation to assess infectious diseasephysicians' attitudes towards LAI-ART in Turkey. This cross-sectional studyutilised a quantitative online survey, conducted among physicians providingcare for people living with HIV (PLWH) across Turkey between March and November2024. A total of 146 infectious disease physicians from 27 cities participated.Most participants (75.9%) supported the use of LAI-ART for patients withadherence difficulties, while 64.8% would consider offering it upon patientrequest, and 57.6% would offer it proactively. Physicians following more than100 PLWH monthly and those with self-reported sufficient knowledge of LAI-ARTwere significantly more likely to recommend its use (p = 0.006 and p = 0.019,respectively). Infectious disease physicians in Turkey generally hold positiveattitudes towards LAI-ART, favouring it particularly for adherence-relatedindications and patient demand. However, the implementation of LAI-ART willdepend on addressing structural barriers related to hospital infrastructure anddeveloping evidence-based national guidelines.