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. 2017 Jul;9(7):159-163.
doi: 10.5897/JAHR2017.0432. Epub 2017 Jul 31.

Childbearing intentions among sexually active HIV-infected and HIV-uninfected female adolescents in South Africa

David H Adler  1 , Beau Abar  1 , Thola Bennie  2 , Rokhsanna Sadeghi  1 , Linda-Gail Bekker  2
Affiliations

Childbearing intentions among sexually active HIV-infected and HIV-uninfected female adolescents in South Africa

David H Adler et al. J AIDS HIV Res. 2017 Jul.

Abstract

Women of reproductive age account for nearly half of all HIV-infected people worldwide. Childbearing intention among HIV-infected women is complicated by social and reproductive concerns related to their HIV status. We conducted a cross-sectional study of HIV-infected and HIV-uninfected sexually active South African women aged 17 to 21 in order to compare their childbearing intentions and to identify predictors of the desire to have children among women with HIV. We found the rate of childbearing intention to be similarly high among both HIV-infected and HIV-uninfected study participants (80 and 79% respectively, p=0.81). History of previous parity was found to be associated with decreased intention to have children. No difference in childbearing intention was found between HIV-infected women on anti-retroviral therapy (ART) and women not on ART. High rates of childbearing intention among HIV-infected women require integration of reproductive health services with comprehensive HIV/AIDS care in order to mitigate the risks of sexual and vertical transmission of HIV.

Keywords: HIV; South Africa; anti-retroviral therapy; childbearing intention.

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Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of Interests: The authors have not declared any conflict of interests.

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