       Document 0607
 DOCN  M9610607
 TI    The consequences of a positive prenatal HIV antibody test for women.
 DT    9601
 AU    Lester P; Partridge JC; Chesney MA; Cooke M; Department of Psychiatry,
       San Francisco General Hospital,; University of California 94143, USA.
 SO    J Acquir Immune Defic Syndr Hum Retrovirol. 1995 Nov 1;10(3):341-9.
       Unique Identifier : AIDSLINE MED/96027802
 AB    As more women of childbearing age are affected by the human
       immunodeficiency virus (HIV), many providers have demanded routine
       perinatal HIV screening, arguing that the medical benefits of testing
       outweigh the socioeconomic, medical, and psychological risks of a
       positive HIV test for women. In this primarily urban poor population, we
       used a semistructured interview to evaluate differences in health care
       discrimination, economic losses, risk behaviors, relationships changes,
       and psychological status in 20 HIV-positive and 20 HIV-negative mothers
       matched for HIV risk, race, income, and delivery date. Many (35%)
       seropositive and no seronegative women cited health care discrimination
       due to HIV status. Although seropositive women reported greater
       satisfaction with social support from friends (100%) and family (80%),
       many women had not disclosed their HIV status to any friends (65%) or
       family (25%), indicating fear of abandonment. Only 56% of HIV positive
       and 44% of seronegative women knew their partners' HIV status, and many
       HIV-positive and HIV-negative women reported having sex without condoms
       after the HIV test. Mean standardized anxiety (p < 0.05) and depression
       scores were higher in seropositive women. Despite added social support
       and medical treatments, HIV-positive women showed higher levels of
       health care discrimination, personal isolation, and psychological
       sequelae than their seronegative counterparts. As the medical benefits
       to prenatal HIV testing increase, we will need to develop focused
       medical, social, and mental health services addressing the needs of
       HIV-positive women.
 DE    Adult  Case-Control Studies  Confidentiality  Delivery of Health Care
       Disease Transmission, Vertical  Family  Family Planning  Female  Fetal
       Diseases/DIAGNOSIS/PSYCHOLOGY  Health Behavior  Human  HIV
       Antibodies/*ANALYSIS  HIV
       Seropositivity/DIAGNOSIS/*PSYCHOLOGY/TRANSMISSION  *HIV-1/IMMUNOLOGY
       Pregnancy  Pregnancy Complications, Infectious/DIAGNOSIS/*PSYCHOLOGY
       *Prejudice  Prenatal Diagnosis/*PSYCHOLOGY  Sex Behavior  Social Support
       Socioeconomic Factors  Support, Non-U.S. Gov't  Support, U.S. Gov't,
       P.H.S.  JOURNAL ARTICLE

       SOURCE: National Library of Medicine.  NOTICE: This material may be
       protected by Copyright Law (Title 17, U.S.Code).

