HIV SEROCONVERSION AND DETERMINANTS AMONG SERONEGATIVE PREGNANT WOMEN ATTENDING ANTENATAL CLINIC IN CALABAR: A FACILITY-BASED CROSS-SECTIONAL STUDY

Background Heterosexual intercourse remains the main route of transmission of HIV in Nigeria. Multiple sexual partners, concurrent sexually transmitted diseases, and poverty are the main risk factors. A pregnant woman may seroconvert after an initial negative HIV test result performed early in pregnancy, hence the need for a repeat test in late pregnancy. As such, a woman carries the risk of infecting her baby if she remains undiagnosed and untreated. Aims The study was aimed at determining the incidence and risk factors for HIV seroconversion among pregnant women in Calabar, Nigeria. Methodology An institution-based cross-sectional study was conducted among w/omen who tested negative for HIV at booking and were recruited by convenience sampling into the study at a gestational age of at least 34 weeks. Subjects had repeat (second) HIV tests done for them at recruitment after obtaining ethical approval and their informed consent. Sociodemographic and obstetric data, as well as risk factors for HIV transmission and/or seroconversion, were also obtained using a structured questionnaire. Results No subject was found to have seroconverted during the period of study, irrespective of their sociodemographic, obstetric, and other potential risk factors. Conclusions Multiple factors may be responsible for the 0% prevalence of HIV seroconversion found in this study. These include the impact of the various awareness, counseling, testing, treatment, and behavior change intervention programs. The dynamics and timing of seroconversion may also be a significant factor. Efforts aimed at HIV prevention should be sustained to ensure the complete eradication of mother-to-child transmission of the pandemic