ABSTRACT

Objective: This study identified factors contributing to pregnancies in HIV-positive women who were on a prevention of HIV from mother-to-child transmission (PMTCT) programme in Letlhakeng Subdistrict, Botswana.

Method: A cross-sectional descriptive survey was employed using an interviewer administered (face-toface) questionnaire to obtain information from 35 HIV-positive pregnant women registered for a PMTCT programme. Use was made of a non-probability sampling method to obtain information from all the pregnant women who sought antenatal care (ANC) during the survey period.

Results: The age of the participants ranged between 18 and 37 years with a modal age of 30 years and a mean of 29.02 years (standard deviation of 5.29). The majority of the participants were single (66%) and had two or more children (74%). About half of the participants (49%) had secondary school education and a high proportion of them knew their HIV-positive status for more than one year prior to the interview day (77%) while the same number of them were unemployed. Pregnant participants seemed to know their HIV status prior to pregnancy. Sharing information about the HIV status of their partners and the participant’s financial dependence on their partners did not show any significant association with their pregnancy status. However, the partner’s desire for parenthood (p < 0.05, 95% CI), the age difference between them and their partners (p < 0.05, 95%CI) and the use of condoms (p < 0.05, 95% CI) indicated significant associations between decision-making and the pregnancies.

Conclusion: Pregnancy is common among HIV-positive women who are on a PMTCT at Letlhakeng sub-district as was shown by this study and this may constitute a serious health risk to the child and to the population in general.