This study develops a Susceptible, Tuberculosis-Infected, HIV-Infected, Tuberculosis Treatment, Recovered Post-Treatment, and AIDS-Infected (STHMRA) epidemic model for HIV/AIDS–TB co-infection to investigate the role of media awareness in disease control. The model incorporates six disease-stage compartments and explores equilibrium states, reproduction numbers, and stability. The analysis highlights key non-obvious interactions: awareness-driven reductions in transmission stabilize TB prevalence more effectively than they slow HIV progression, revealing different levels of responsiveness between the two diseases. Sensitivity analysis shows that transmission rates are the most influential parameter, far outweighing recovery or mortality effects. Bifurcation analysis identifies critical thresholds – small changes in awareness or transmission can trigger sudden epidemic shifts. Numerical simulations confirm that combining medical interventions with media-driven awareness is more effective than treatment alone. These findings provide evidence that integrated medical and behavioural strategies are essential for sustainable control of HIV/AIDS–-TB co-infection.
Raina et al. (Thu,) studied this question.