Yes. This is one of the reasons that your psychiatrist needs to take
a careful history. For example, HIV-positive men can have low testosterone
levels which may cause decreased energy, loss of sexual desire, and feelings
of depression. You can determine your testosterone level with a simple
blood test, and should receive testosterone replacement if your level
is abnormally low.
Sustiva, an drug used to treat HIV,
can cause a variety of psychological side effects. If your depression
coincides with starting Sustiva and becomes severe or lasts more than
a few weeks, you should consider switching to another anti-HIV drug to
see if the depression improves. For more information, see "Tips
& Tricks on Taking Sustiva".
In advanced symptomatic HIV disease, a number of opportunistic
infections (OIs) as well as HIV itself can affect the brain so as
to produce symptoms of depression. Antidepressant medication may still
be indicated, but the underlying problem should be diagnosed first and
treated if possible.
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