Pregnancy outcomes in young mothers with perinatally and behaviorally acquired HIV infections in Rio de Janeiro

Perinatally HIV-infected children are surviving into adulthood, and getting pregnant. There is a scarcity of information on health and pregnancy outcomes in these women.

To evaluate characteristics related to HIV disease and pregnancy outcomes in perinatally infected women, and to compare these women with a group of youth with behaviorally acquired HIV-infection, at a reference hospital in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

A cohort study. Epidemiological, clinical, and laboratory data were compared between perinatally (PHIV) and behaviorally HIV-infected (BHIV) pregnant youth with the primary aim to study pregnancy outcomes in the PHIV group and compare with outcomes to BHIV group.

Thirty-two pregnancies occurred in PHIV group, and 595 in BHIV group. A total of seven (22%) PHIV women and 64 (11%) BHIV women had a premature delivery (p=0.04), however, when adjusting for younger age at pregnancy, and antiretroviral therapy initiation in 1st trimester of pregnancy (OR=18.66, 95%CI=5.52-63.14), the difference was no longer significant. No cases of mother-to-child HIV transmission (MTCT) were observed in the PHIV group while there was a 2% MTCT rate in BHIV group.

Pregnancy among PHIV was as safe as among BHIV. The differences between those groups were probably related to treatment and prolonged care in the first group.