Pregnancy and HIV infection in young women in North Carolina

We described young women in North Carolina (NC) who were pregnant at the time of diagnosis with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection to identify an at-risk population that could be targeted for increased HIV screening. We investigated the combined effect of partner counseling and referral services (PCRS) and comprehensive prenatal HIV screening.

We conducted a retrospective review of PCRS charts on young women newly diagnosed with HIV in NC between 2002 and 2005. We determined the prevalence of pregnancy in the study sample and conducted bivariate analyses to assess predictors of pregnancy at the time of HIV diagnosis, calculating prevalence ratios (PRs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs). We analyzed results of partner notification efforts, including timing and stage of diagnosis of HIV-positive partners.

During the four-year period, 551 women aged 18-30 years were newly diagnosed with HIV; 30% were pregnant at the time of HIV diagnosis. Pregnant women were more likely to be Hispanic (PR=1.58, 95% CI 1.15, 2.17) and not report typical risk factors. Fourteen percent of pregnant women's partners had an undiagnosed infection compared with slightly more than 8% of nonpregnant women's partners (p<0.01).

Ethnic differences in co-diagnosis of pregnancy and HIV suggest that young Hispanic women may have differential access to and acceptance of routine HIV screening. Comprehensive prenatal screening combined with partner notification can be effective in reaching infected male partners who are undiagnosed.