HIV+ woman

[Dakota]

There was an article on a TV magazine this morning. The guest was a woman who is HIV positive and has been for 12 years (I missed how advanced the disease is). When she first found out about this, she was pregnant and subsequently aborted the pregnancy as she did not want to risk the child. Now, 12 years on she is planning on having a child of her own and explained that the chances of the child contracting the disease is 1%.

What is your opinion on this matter?

[maggie01]

I don't understand why would she abort one because of her condition and now decide she would like to have another one. The HIV is still there even if it is only 1%. My opininion for what its worth is . It is easy to say I wouldn't take a chance if you already have children but if this is your first child I am not so sure. 1% is very low but its still possible. My daughter recently had a condition which was 1 in 500 unforturnately she was the 1

[boobesque]

12 years ago it was thought that you couldnt have kids with hiv cos the risk of your child getting it was too high, now it is much more controlled and is known that the risk is very low, i think that if her hiv is under control and the drugs are working for her then good luck to her, there was a women i read about in a mag a few months ago who has 2 healthy children, even though she was told not to have kids years ago.

[january_bug]

I'm inclined to agree with boobesque. The chances of a child being born with Down Syndrome are 1 in 800-1000 (here ) but people still have children. Many other diseases too of course! I understand that Downs is different and that it's in no way the parent's fault if the child contracts it.

The only problem I would have with this (because I tihnk the statistics are on her side) would be the mother's own life expectancy. If she knows she will not live for a further 15 years, then it is perhaps cruel to bring children into the world, risking having them born with a terminal illness, and knowing that she will not be around to care for them much into their teens. I'd hope that she's considered this.

[Drusilla]

Antiretroviral drugs have decreased the risk of passing HIV to a baby from something like 50% to 2%. If her partner is HIV- it would be safer for him to use artificial insemination. If he is HIV+ it is possible to wash his sperm, thus reducing the possibility of infection further. If they are both HIV+, it would be safer to refrain form unprotected sex once she is pregnant, so as not to risk passing on another strain of the HIV virus to the baby. The drugs are improving all the time and a child born with HIV today need not life their life as a death sentence.

[Piper-AK]

What an awful positon to be in. I think I would be tempted to adopt, but the maternal urge (to have your own child) can be so strong. One of my mum's best mates has been HIV+ since 1986 and is still going strong (touch wood) through a mix of drugs and his healthy lifestyle. With all the new drugs that keep coming out it should be possible to live a 'normal' lifespan.