Pregnancy Leads to Higher HIV Transmission Risk

New research reveals men are at a much higher risk of contracting HIV from their female partner if she is pregnant. The risk of infection more than doubles during pregnancy. The results of the 2 year study in Africa have been presented at the International Microbicides Conference in Pittsburgh. The results of the study lead medical professionals to encourage antenatal HIV testing.

Dr. Nelly Mugo of the University of Nairobi teamed with researchers at the University of Washington to compile the research. The study followed 3,321 couples throughout  Kenya, Rwanda, Botswana, South Africa, Uganda, Zambia and Tanzania. One partner in every couple was infected with HIV and the other tested negative. In 2,236 couples, the woman was HIV positive and in 1085 couples the man was positive. Throughout the study 823 pregnancies occurred.

Research shows that not only were the males more likely to contract the deadly virus but females were also more susceptible during pregnancy. The researchers noted the increased risk in women was attributed to a number of different factors including sexual behavior. The woman’s immune system strength did not play a factor in the man’s increased risk. Researchers also did not find any increased risk in men that were uncircumcised. The only conclusion the researchers could draw leaves more questions than answers. Researchers theorize the increased risk of infection to physiological and immunological changes that occur in a woman during pregnancy. The researchers note that more studies and research are needed to find the exact correlation between pregnancy and HIV transmission risk.