HIV disease and reproductive counseling.

Research findings have changed reproductive decisions for HIV-infected women in their childbearing years. A variety of studies in the United States place the risk of vertical transmission (from mother to fetus) at between thirteen and thirty percent. Recent results of the AIDS Clinical Trial Group (ACTG) 076 protocol have found that zidovudine (ZDV; AZT) had a significant inhibitory affect on HIV transmission from mother to fetus. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that all women, especially those who are pregnant, be given the opportunity to learn of their HIV infection status through voluntary HIV testing and counseling. This article briefly reviews these issues and other factors that HIV-infected women may consider when making reproductive decisions and HIV-related treatment choices once pregnancy is underway.