Prevalence and characteristics of perinatal depression in women with HIV infection

Aim. To determine the incidence of perinatal depression and the nature of emotional experiences in women living with HIV. Design. Cross-sectional descriptive comparative study. Materials and methods. During 6 months (from April to October 2024), all pregnant women (n = 96) and women who had given birth within 3 months prior to the study (n = 28) were examined at the outpatient appointment of a psychiatrist, gynecologist, and pediatrician at the St. Petersburg Center for the prevention and control of AIDS and infectious diseases The average age was 35.3 ± 5.0 (from 19 to 47) years. The comparison group included HIV-infected women who were not in the perinatal period (n = 199; average age — 35.4 ± 6.3 (from 18 to 47) years). Methods: clinical, experimental psychological (using the Symptomatic questionnaire of neurotic disorders SCL-90 (Simptom Check List-90-Revised)), laboratory (the number of CD4 lymphocytes (cl/ml) and HIV RNA in blood plasma (copies/ml)). Statistical data analysis was performed using the Statistica 10.0 program. Results. The prevalence of depressive states in women with HIV who were in the perinatal period was higher than in the comparison group (30 (24%) versus 32 (16%) cases; p = 0.03). Women in the perinatal period most often showed a high level of social adaptation. Depressive, hypochondriac, and asthenic experiences were more typical for pregnant women and women in labor with HIV, in contrast to women with HIV infection who were not in the perinatal period. Four variants of the clinical picture of perinatal depression in women with HIV infection (anxious, hypochondriac, dysphoric, mixed) are described, among which dysphoric and anxious were the most common. Conclusion. When planning pregnancy, a visit to a psychiatrist is necessary to identify the risks of mental disorders in the perinatal period and timely therapy if they are diagnosed. In order to identify the risk of perinatal depression, all HIV-infected pregnant women and women in labor must undergo psychological testing and receive medical and psychological support. Keywords: perinatal depression, HIV infection, mental disorders, pregnancy.