HIV Testing of Pregnant Women
Routine human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) prenatal testing is the current recommendation from the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) and from the Institute of Medicine (IOM). The IOM outlined new recommendations in 1998 and ACOG released similar guidelines in 2000.
Background
In 1994, federal guidelines for prenatal HIV testing were developed because of new therapy that reduced the chance for women infected with the HIV virus to pass it to their children.
The guidelines at that time recommended that health care providers give detailed pre-test counseling to all pregnant women, explaining the risks of AIDS and the benefits of being tested.
While prenatal HIV testing and treatment seemed to increase after the 1994 guidelines were released, many health care providers were only suggesting HIV prenatal testing to those women considered high risk for HIV infection. Therefore, many women were still not being tested or treated and the number of children born with HIV was still unacceptably high, according to the 1998 IOM report.
The prediction is that by offering HIV testing routinely to ALL pregnant women, more women would be identified and treated for HIV, and this would decrease the number of children born with HIV.
Current Status of HIV Testing
The Center for Disease Control and Prevention, ACOG, and the IOM all recommend universal screening for of pregnant women for HIV. Some state laws require testing of all pregnant women, while others do not.
Pregnant Women with HIV
Prevention of transmission of HIV from mother to fetus (vertical transmission) is a major goal in the care of pregnant women with HIV. Earlier studies have shown that treatment of the mother with Zidovudine (AZT) during pregnancy and labor and of the newborn could reduce the transmission rate from 25% to 8%. More recent studies suggest the risk can be reduced to less than 2%.
For a woman whose infection is well-controlled with medications, the risk approaches zero. Those with high circulating levels of HIV virus may be offered a cesarean section before they go into labor, as this reduces the chance the baby will be infected. HIV positive women should not breastfeed.
Review Date: January 10, 2005
Reviewed By: Alison M. Stuebe, M.D., Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA. Review provided by VeriMed Healthcare Network.
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