Bor 2012.

Methods	CBA study (retrospective)
Participants	32,321 population cohort of all working‐age (18‐59) people who were members of a household in Africa Centre for Health and Population Studies’s population surveillance area during the 10‐year follow‐up period, excluding HIV+ persons not accessing ART. (South Africa) Index group: 2027 HIV+ persons Reference group: 30,294
Interventions	Intervention: Pharmacological, ART through the Hlabisa HIV Treatment and Care Program Control: Drawn from the same population, but non‐HIV, untreated, apparently healthy
Outcomes	Employment: Employment status measured as 'yes' or 'no' Authors also assessed: 1) Unemployment due to illness, 2) Residence in surveillance area (migration indicator), 3) Physical function: Walk 5 km without stopping, carry heavy objects for 20 meters without stopping, participate in vigorous activities, 4) Immunological status: CD4+ lymphocyte counts
Notes	ART
Risk of bias
Bias	Authors' judgement	Support for judgement
14. Blinding (Subjects)	Low risk	Retrospective data collected and cross‐referenced from a cohort's surveys of sociodemographics and health data. Participants were unaware they were under investigation for the specific intervention at the time of the cohort surveys.
15. Blinding (outcome assessors)	Low risk	Not blinded. Retrospective data collected and cross‐referenced from a cohort's surveys of sociodemographics and health data. Objective outcomes that should have been unaffected by blinding.
16. Retrospective unplanned subgroup analysis	Unclear risk	Retrospective study, data dredging not clear.
17. Follow‐up	Low risk	Follow‐ups conducted for both index and reference at 8‐5 years, 5‐3 years, 3‐2.5 years, 2.5‐2 years, 2‐1.5 years, 1.5‐1 years, 1‐0.5 year both pre‐ and post‐ART initiation.
18. Statistical tests	Low risk	Odds ratio, t‐statistics, and hazards ratio
19. Compliance	Unclear risk	Compliance to ART was not monitored or insured. ART adherence is required for survival, therefore compliance is highly likely.
20. Outcome measures	Low risk	All predetermined outcome measures were analyzed and reported.
21. Selection Bias (population)	Low risk	All participants were collected from South Africa's Africa Centre population surveillance area in the Hlabisa subdistrict. The study used all HIV+ persons who were utilizing ART during the 10‐year follow‐up period of the Africa Centre's population surveillance study.
22. Selection bias (time)	Low risk	All individuals residing in the surveillance area were monitored between 2001‐2010 and for inclusion in the study were required to have lived in the surveillance area 6 months prior to the establishment of the Hlabisa HIV Treatment and Care Program.
23. Randomization	High risk	No randomization. Retrospective cohort study.
24. Allocation concealment	Unclear risk	Retrospective study of a cohort. Participants were not assigned by the research team, but were predetermined by health status. Did not report the use of adequate sequence generation or allocation concealment techniques.
25. Adjustment for confounding	High risk	Migration confounder addressed. Gender differences not addressed. Age differences not addressed. SES differences not addressed. Disease severity not addressed.
26. Incomplete outcome data	High risk	20.4% attrition in index group addressed. No data reported for control group.
Baseline comparability	High risk	Differences in gender proportions: Index group 80.1% female and reference group 59.9% female Age groups were disproportionate: (18‐25 years) index 17.5%, reference 49.4%; (25‐34 years) index 38.7%, reference 21%; (35‐44 years) index 31%, reference 18.2% SES not specifically reported, but > 12 years of school was also disproportionate between groups: index 33.9%, reference 45.1%. Disease severity was incomparable in the index group (HIV+ persons) and reference group (healthy and undiagnosed, asymptomatic HIV+ people)