Jornal de Pesquisa Clínica

HIV and Pregnancy: Maternal and Neonatal Outcomes

Abstract

Richard Khondowe*

Background: The HIV/AIDS epidemic is one of the major factors affecting women’s health, with 20 million women living with HIV and more than two million pregnancies in HIV-positive women each year. Several studies conducted in SSA have reported that HIV-infected women are at increased risk of maternal adverse pregnancy outcomes such as stillbirth, LBW and preterm new-born. In addition, children born to HIVinfected mothers are at increased risk of mortality regardless of their HIV infectious status. Understanding pregnancy related risks HIV infected women may face is critical to providing appropriate counselling and management of fertility intentions, decisions and unintended pregnancy.

Objectives: To determine the maternal and neonatal outcomes (morbidity and mortality) in pregnant HIV infected women at Masala, Lubuto and Mapalo Clinics of Ndola, Zambia.

Methodology: This is a cross sectional and descriptive study. Data was collected from relevant medical records of HIV-positive pregnant women who delivered using a data abstraction sheet and selected by convenience sampling. The data collected was entered and analysed using IBM SPSS v26.

Results: A total of 360 participants were recruited in the study, 36.7% were aged 25-29 years (majority), 43% attained secondary school as highest level of education, 78.1% were married and 78.2% were self-employed (traders). 91.6% were diagnosed with HIV infection prior to pregnancy, 98.3% and 96.1% received ARV and co-trimoxazole prophylaxis respectively. 60% delivered preterm 96.1% had no maternal morbidities/complications and 0% maternal death, 2.8% had epiostomy and 0.61% postpartum haemorrhage. 55% of neonates were females 82.2% had normal birth weight, 41.9% were premature and 2.2% had asphyxia, 12.8% had LBW and 1.1% stillbirths. Statistical significance was established between gestational age at delivery to birth weight and neonatal morbidities (P=0.001).

Conclusion: Majority of the maternal and neonatal outcomes were normal with only preterm delivery 60% and prematurity 41.9% the noted significant figures. According to the study, there is an association between gestational age at delivery and birth weight as well as neonatal morbidities in HIV positive pregnant women.