Some HIV-positive women who want to have children feel stigmatised by their doctors.
New antiretroviral drugs for HIV treatment mean that HIV-positive women can conceive without transmitting HIV to their newborns. To examine issues associated with conception in HIV-positive women, researchers surveyed 159 HIV-positive Canadian women in the province of Ontario. Forty-five percent of the women were born in Canada, while 55 percent were born elsewhere, mainly in HIV-endemic areas such as sub-Saharan Africa and the Caribbean.
The participants were asked about their personal background, HIV treatment and mental health as well as whether they felt they were being negatively judged by health-care providers, family and friends for their desire to have children.
Most of them said they were being judged negatively by health-care providers for wanting to have babies. Family and friends didn't play a major role in the perceived stigmatisation.
The study shows that continuing medical education is needed to reduce the stigma perceived by HIV-positive women, which can improve their mental health and well-being.