PSYCHIATRIC MORBIDITY IN SENTENCED SEGREGATED HIV-POSITIVE PRISONERS

In this comparative study with a control group of prisoners, psychiatr ic morbidity was measured in two groups of sentenced prisoners, each g roup completing the GHQ-30 and 21-item Beck Depression inventory (BDI) . Group 1 consisted of 40 segregated HIV-positive prisoners and group 2 a matched control group in the main prison who had no history of HIV seropositivity. All members of group 1 had a history of intravenous d rug abuse. The mean GHQ30 and BDI scores were significantly higher in group 1, and 90% of group 1 were psychiatric 'cases' compared with jus t over 42% of group 2. Levels of psychiatric morbidity present in a th ird group. consisting of HIV-positive prisoners who had not been segre gated (prison authorities were unaware of their seropositivity) are an interesting pointer for further research.