SEXUAL-BEHAVIOR AND PREGNANCY OUTCOME IN HIV-INFECTED WOMEN

Sexual behavior and pregnancy outcome data for 392 HIV-infected women were analyzed. During the 6 months before study entry, 71.2% (279 of 3 92 women) were sexually active. In multivariate regression, women with baseline CD4(+) greater than or equal to 200/mu l were more likely th an women with CD4(+) <200/mu l to be sexually active (adjusted odds ra tio [OR] = 1.75; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.06-2.88; p = .03). Co nsistent condom use was reported with 58.4% (149 of 255) of steady mal e partners and 65.7% (23 of 35) of casual partners. Overall, 90.3% of 279 sexually active women were using contraception. Among women aged b etween 15 and 44 years (n = 320), the incidence of pregnancy in the ye ar before HIV diagnosis was 27.5 per 100 person-years (PY) (95% CI, 22 .1-33.9) compared with 8.3/100 PY (95% CI, 6.8-10.2) in the time since HIV diagnosis (p < .001). The incidence of therapeutic termination of pregnancies conceived in the 20 weeks before HIV diagnosis (10.6/100 PY) was more than triple that after diagnosis (3.1/100 PY; p = .001). After publication of results of zidovudine prophylaxis of mother-to-ch ild transmission, pregnancy rates did not increase, but the incidence of therapeutic abortion dropped from 4.3/100 PY to 1.4/100 PY (p = .00 9). Knowledge of sexual behavior, including pregnancy frequency and ou tcome, can assist in tailoring counseling for HIV-infected women conce rning sexual and reproductive health.