Adherence to Anti-retroviral Therapy among HIV Positive Pregnant Women in Ayder Refferal Hospital, Northern Ethiopia

Background: Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) is one of the major global public health problems. Antiretroviral therapy (ART) helps to prevent transmission of HIV from infected pregnant women to the un-born babies. ART adherence rate, as high as 95% is crucial to effectively decrease maternal viral load and risk of vertical transmission of HIV. The aim of this study was to evaluate ART adherence level among HIV positive pregnant women in Ayder referral hospital.Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted from March to May 2016 at Ayder referral hospital. All HIV positive pregnant women who were on ART follow up during the study period were included. Data were collected through direct interview of participants and review of their medical records. Data were entered and analyzed using SPSS version 20 software.Results: A total of 41 HIV-positive pregnant women were interviewed. The mean age was 30.1 ± 2.3 years. Thirty eight (92.7%) participants were within the age group of 20-34 years. Forty participants (97.6%) were disclosed their HIV status to their husband and/or families. Nineteen (46.3%) participants were taking ART medication for less than 2 years. Thirty nine participants had good adherence rate (≥ 95%). Illiterate participants had lower adherence rate (71.4%) as compared to literates. The common reasons for missing a dose in the last one month were forgetfulness and side effect of the drug.Conclusions: This study showed a good ART adherence among HIV positive pregnant women. The main reasons for missing a dose in the last one month were forgetfulness and side effect of the drug.