title: Effect of pregnancy and the postpartum period on adherence to antiretroviral therapy among HIV-infected women established on treatment.
abstract: : Among women who become pregnant after initiating highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART), few data describe the effect of pregnancy and postpartum on adherence. We conducted a retrospective clinical cohort study among therapy-naive women (age, 18-45 years) initiating HAART in Johannesburg, South Africa. Among 7510 women in our analysis, 896 experienced a pregnancy after starting HAART. Compared with nonpregnant periods of follow-up, there was an increased risk of nonadherence during the postpartum period (weighted risk ratio: 1.46, 95% confidence interval: 1.17 to 1.82) but not during pregnancy itself (weighted risk ratio: 0.95, 95% confidence interval: 0.78 to 1.17).
authors.affiliation: *Department of Epidemiology, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC; †Health Economics and Epidemiology Research Office, Department of Internal Medicine, School of Clinical Medicine, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, South Africa; and ‡Division of Infectious Diseases, Department of Medicine, School of Medicine, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC.
authors.forename: Cassidy E
authors.initials: CE
authors.lastname: Henegar
authors.forename: Daniel J
authors.initials: DJ
authors.lastname: Westreich
authors.forename: Mhairi
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Maskew
authors.forename: William C
authors.initials: WC
authors.lastname: Miller
authors.forename: M Alan
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Brookhart
authors.forename: Annelies
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Van Rie
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D023241:Antiretroviral Therapy, Highly Active / Q000379:methods*; D015331:Cohort Studies; D005260:Female; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000188:drug therapy*; D006801:Humans; D055118:Medication Adherence; D008875:Middle Aged; D049590:Postpartum Period; D011247:Pregnancy; D011251:Pregnancy Complications, Infectious; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D013019:South Africa; D055815:Young Adult