Question
I am HIV positive and pregnant, what are the risks?
7 January 2018. Related: All topics, Pregnancy.
I am 32, married and have two children. I am HIV positive and so is my husband. I recently discovered I am pregnant but my husband is furious with me, and has advised me to go for an abortion. I am now debating on what to do as I do not want to go through a pregnancy without the support of my husband. What are the risks in pregnancy when HIV positive?
Answer
Thank you for your question.
Congratulations on the pregnancy and I am sorry if this is causing problems with your husband.
Is he upset because he is worried about the child becoming positive? Or because he is worried about your health? Or something else?
Also, are you already taking HIV treatment (ART)? this is because ART is good for both you and your baby’s health.
Many HIV positive women all over the world give birth to healthy negative children using ART. There is no medical reason stopping you from having this baby if you decide you want to continue with the pregnancy.
Also, for your health, HIV positive women are not usually at any further risk of pregnancy-related complications than negative women. As far as the HIV is concerned, most women have a small drop in their CD4 count of about 50, but this goes up again once the baby is born. For more information on this please follow this link.
For general information about HIV, Pregnancy and Women’s Health please see this i-Base guide.
Good luck!
Note: this answer was updated in January 2018 from a question first posted in January 2011.
I’m hiv positive n I’m taking my medication since from 2014 now I have 3 children n they are not infected
Hi Palesa,
If you’re asking if your status can effect you conceiving the answer is no. Being positive has no impact on a woman’s ability to conceive.
I’m hiv positive and I’m trying to conceive what can I do I need advice
Hi Naomi,
I’m sorry to hear your story.
But your HIV meds can help look after your health. The important thing is that the meds also look after your baby’s health. HIV meds can help protect your baby from HIV. Treating your HIV will reduce the risk of your baby becoming HIV positive to almost zero.
So far, all the evidence, over more than 25 years, shows that HIV drugs appear to be safe for your baby while you’re pregnant.
Please can you talk to the doctor about feeling this way because you’re positive?
Even though it may not feel like it, your health will be better now you know your HIV status. This is because you can now get the right monitoring and treatment. If you had not found out, your health would have just got worse.
Here’s the guide to HIV pregnancy and women’s health.
As it says in this guide, Women around the world have taken HIV drugs safely in pregnancy now for over 20 years. This usually involves taking at least three drugs and is called ART.
ART has completely changed the lives of people with HIV in every country where it is used. ART has had an enormous effect on the health of HIV positive mothers and their children. It has encouraged many women to think about having children (or having children again).
If you live in South Africa, you can contact the Treatment Action Campaign for help and support.
Please let us know how you get on.
Best wishes, Roy
I’m HIV and I’ve been taking my medication till today but I’m scared that I might infect my baby
I tried to commite suicide since i known that I’m positive
So what are the risks . I don’t want to kill my child with this HIV
Hi Enhle,
Thanks. And as Lisa says, if you’re pregnant you’re going to need to start medication.
It is important to know your status and visit your nerest clinic to protect the hiv in the baby
Hi Andiswa,
If you’re pregnant you’re going to need to start medication. The medication will reduce the risk of transmission to your child. There’s more about this here: http://i-base.info/guides/pregnancy
Because you’ll need to start medication, you may also find the following guide helpful: http://i-base.info/guides/starting
I’m HIV positive but I haven’t started with my treatment, few weeks back I found out that I’m pregnant. Is there any possibility that the baby could be also infected?
Hi Nunu,
You having sex without a condom with your husband won’t have any impact on your child. If a child is to contract HIV they contract it from their mothers. There’s more about this here: http://i-base.info/guides/pregnancy
Because you’re now aware of your status, its important that you start medication. Please see here: http://i-base.info/guides/starting