Question
If I become pregnant, can I give birth to a negative baby?
3 January 2012. Related: All topics, Pregnancy.
Hi I’m HIV positive and 24yrs old. I would like to know if it possible to fall pregnant and give birth to a negative baby? What if my partner and I are both HIV positive? Will we be able to have child?
Answer
Lots of HIV positive people have children. By using HIV meds (ARVs) this
dramatically reduces the risk to the baby.
It is more important that you, rather than your partner, use treatment
during pregnancy as the babies HIV status is related to your status rather
than your partners. This risk comes not when you conceive but mainly at
birth. If treatment has reduced your viral load to undetectable, this risk
is dramatically lower.
Please talk to your HIV doctor about this. Also see the guide to HIV and
Pregnancy at this link.
Hi,am Alutar
Am 3 months pregnant,is it necessary to take ART even though its clear the baby can only be infected during birth not during pregnancy?I have been living with hiv for 13 yrs just living healthy lifestyle i dont want to take meds,but I dont wanna risk it for my baby can I only take drugs during birth then stop after the baby is born? I really can’t stomach any meds,I wanna protect my baby without having to be on chronic medication….can I not take arvs,give birth thru c/s to reduce chances of infecting baby so I dont have to take arvs for life?
Hi Sarah,
It’s great news that your son is HIV negative at 7 months. But all baby’s need to take a short course of HIV drugs for the first weeks of life if their mother is HIV positive. However, all HIV positive mothers in the UK are recommended not to breastfeed. This is regardless of their CD4, viral load or HIV medication.
But it’s important you talk to the doctor about breastfeeding and continuing his medication.
If a mother is breastfeeding the recommendation is exclusively breastfeeding for 6 months and then weaning baby onto solid food.
Taking your HIV meds can benefit your health and also reduce the risk of HIV to your baby. Here is the guide to HIV, pregnancy and women’s health.
I am Hiv positive and my son is negative at 7 Months so I want to know that I continue giving him medication or I only breastfeed without give him medication
Hi my name is linda i also tested positive while i was a month pregnant then started my treatment afterward i am a happy mom because my baby boy tested negetive in his 18 months
Hi Bernard,
If your girlfriend is pregnant, its very important that she is on ARVs. This is because its the ARVs that reduce the risk of transmission to babies. If she isn’t on meds, she risks infecting the baby.
Is there any specific reason why she doesn’t want to take meds?
good afternoon
i am benard i need your help
my girlfriend is HIV positive and i am negative
she has refused to start taking ARVs,
my question is can she give birth to a negative child i need your advice
please help me
Hi Ella,
Its not possible for me say if your baby will be negative or not. However, you being on treatment is great. This will reduce the risk of transmission. For more info, please see here:
http://i-base.info/guides/pregnancy
I am HIV positive and pregnant, I started taking treatment from after three (3) month, will my baby be negative. I’m scared.
Hi Bony,
Please see the following link, it explains testing in babies.
http://i-base.info/guides/pregnancy/hiv-negative
When you gave birth what was your viral load?
Hi! My baby’s result came back reactive and he’s only 7weeks old. Does it mean he have to take medication for life?