The Effect of HIV-Centered Obstetric Care on Perinatal Outcomes Among a Cohort of Women Living With HIV.

BACKGROUND: Elimination of perinatal transmission is possible but limited by missed care opportunities. Our objective was to investigate the effects of HIV-centered obstetric care (HCC) on missed care opportunities and perinatal HIV transmission in 2 obstetric cohorts at our institution from 2000 to 2014.

METHODS: This was a retrospective cohort study of HIV-exposed mother-infant pairs delivering from 2000 to 2014, analyzed according to SQUIRE 2.0 (Standards for Quality Improvement Reporting Excellence) guidelines. Before 2009, women received care in high-risk obstetric care (HRC); subsequently, an HCC service was established. Women who received HRC vs HCC obstetric care were compared to determine differences in maternal and neonatal outcomes. Continuous variables were compared with Student t test and Wilcoxon rank sum tests. Categorical variables were compared using χ test and Fisher exact test. Logistic regression analyses were performed to determine factors associated with outcomes of interest.

RESULTS: Over 14 years, 161 women delivered 217 HIV-exposed infants; 78 (36%) women received HCC. Two perinatal HIV transmissions (1.5%) occurred in HRC group compared with none in the HCC group (P = 0.3). Women in HCC were more likely to have HIV RNA viral load <1000 copies per milliliter at delivery (12% vs 26%, P = 0.02), have a contraception plan before delivery (93% vs 60%, P < 0.001), return for postpartum evaluation (80% vs 63%, P = 0.01), and have undetectable HIV viral load postpartum (50 copies per milliliter vs 2067, P < 0.0001).

CONCLUSIONS: HCC can potentially reduce the risk of perinatal HIV transmission by improving maternal virologic control during pregnancy and postpartum and increasing postpartum contraceptive use.