{"title":"Assessment of Pregnancy Status in Patients with Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome and their Partners.","authors":"Mehmet Cabalak, Oya Soylu Karapınar, Cigdem El","doi":"10.2174/011570162X349194241125052104","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>HIV is a globally prevalent infection for which there is currently no cure or vaccine. As the number of individuals with HIV infection increases, so does the number of individuals wishing to have children despite being infected. This situation has highlighted issues related to couples where one partner is infected while the other is not (serodiscordant couples) and couples where both partners are positive. Major issues include pregnancy complications, transmission to the child, and potential side effects of the ART treatment on the health of the child. Women living with HIV who become pregnant or contract the virus during pregnancy are at risk for both maternal and perinatal morbidity and mortality, especially if the virus is not adequately controlled. Additionally, there is a risk of vertical transmission through breastfeeding during pregnancy and postpartum. To mitigate the consequences of HIV during pregnancy, it is ideal to start with prepregnancy counseling and plan pregnancies during periods of minimal viral load using appropriate methods.</p><p><strong>Aims and objective: </strong>There are limited studies and shared experiences regarding fertility status and issues of HIV/AIDS patients, especially in Turkey. Hence, this study aimed to investigate the fertility status of HIV/AIDS patients and their partners followed up in our clinic, shed light on the encountered issues, and share our experiences.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>This retrospective, observational, single-center cross-sectional study included HIV/AIDS patients and their partners followed at Hatay Mustafa Kemal University (MKÜ) Medical Faculty Hospital from January 2018 to December 2023. Demographic data of the patients, their sexual orientations, HIV/AIDS status of their partners and children, treatments received, CD4 cell counts, and viral load data were retrospectively obtained from the automation system of our hospital and patient files.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Among the couples, there were 21 pairs where both partners were HIV positive, 10 pairs where the woman was HIV positive and the man was seronegative (serodiscordant), and 5 pairs where the man was HIV positive and the woman was seronegative. In our study, eight couples with both partners HIV positive had nine children, and six couples with women who were HIV positive (serodiscordant) had ten children. The five couples with men who were HIV positive (serodiscordant) had six children. No vertical transmission was observed in our study, but three patients did not attend regular follow-ups. During the follow-up period, no seroconversion was detected in the partners of serodiscordant patients. The average gestational age was 38 weeks, and the average birth weight was 2873 ± 349 grams.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Our study found no vertical transmission and no seroconversion in partners of serodiscordant couples. Issues related to pregnancy in HIV-positive couples can be managed with pre-pregnancy counseling by specialists, protective methods, appropriate ART, and perinatal follow- up.</p>","PeriodicalId":10911,"journal":{"name":"Current HIV Research","volume":" ","pages":"402-408"},"PeriodicalIF":0.8000,"publicationDate":"2024-01-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Current HIV Research","FirstCategoryId":"3","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.2174/011570162X349194241125052104","RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"","PubModel":"","JCR":"Q4","JCRName":"IMMUNOLOGY","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
Background: HIV is a globally prevalent infection for which there is currently no cure or vaccine. As the number of individuals with HIV infection increases, so does the number of individuals wishing to have children despite being infected. This situation has highlighted issues related to couples where one partner is infected while the other is not (serodiscordant couples) and couples where both partners are positive. Major issues include pregnancy complications, transmission to the child, and potential side effects of the ART treatment on the health of the child. Women living with HIV who become pregnant or contract the virus during pregnancy are at risk for both maternal and perinatal morbidity and mortality, especially if the virus is not adequately controlled. Additionally, there is a risk of vertical transmission through breastfeeding during pregnancy and postpartum. To mitigate the consequences of HIV during pregnancy, it is ideal to start with prepregnancy counseling and plan pregnancies during periods of minimal viral load using appropriate methods.
Aims and objective: There are limited studies and shared experiences regarding fertility status and issues of HIV/AIDS patients, especially in Turkey. Hence, this study aimed to investigate the fertility status of HIV/AIDS patients and their partners followed up in our clinic, shed light on the encountered issues, and share our experiences.
Methods: This retrospective, observational, single-center cross-sectional study included HIV/AIDS patients and their partners followed at Hatay Mustafa Kemal University (MKÜ) Medical Faculty Hospital from January 2018 to December 2023. Demographic data of the patients, their sexual orientations, HIV/AIDS status of their partners and children, treatments received, CD4 cell counts, and viral load data were retrospectively obtained from the automation system of our hospital and patient files.
Results: Among the couples, there were 21 pairs where both partners were HIV positive, 10 pairs where the woman was HIV positive and the man was seronegative (serodiscordant), and 5 pairs where the man was HIV positive and the woman was seronegative. In our study, eight couples with both partners HIV positive had nine children, and six couples with women who were HIV positive (serodiscordant) had ten children. The five couples with men who were HIV positive (serodiscordant) had six children. No vertical transmission was observed in our study, but three patients did not attend regular follow-ups. During the follow-up period, no seroconversion was detected in the partners of serodiscordant patients. The average gestational age was 38 weeks, and the average birth weight was 2873 ± 349 grams.
Conclusion: Our study found no vertical transmission and no seroconversion in partners of serodiscordant couples. Issues related to pregnancy in HIV-positive couples can be managed with pre-pregnancy counseling by specialists, protective methods, appropriate ART, and perinatal follow- up.
期刊介绍:
Current HIV Research covers all the latest and outstanding developments of HIV research by publishing original research, review articles and guest edited thematic issues. The novel pioneering work in the basic and clinical fields on all areas of HIV research covers: virus replication and gene expression, HIV assembly, virus-cell interaction, viral pathogenesis, epidemiology and transmission, anti-retroviral therapy and adherence, drug discovery, the latest developments in HIV/AIDS vaccines and animal models, mechanisms and interactions with AIDS related diseases, social and public health issues related to HIV disease, and prevention of viral infection. Periodically, the journal invites guest editors to devote an issue on a particular area of HIV research of great interest that increases our understanding of the virus and its complex interaction with the host.