BACKGROUND

HIV prevalence data from prevention of mother-to-child-transmission (PMTCT) programs are being utilized to monitor the trend of HIV epidemics that helps policy makers to take appropriate action.

OBJECTIVE

To determine the trend of HIV among pregnant women attending the antenatal care unit of Bishoftu Hospital from January 2006 to June 2010.

METHODS

A cross-sectional study was conducted to determine the prevalence of HIV among pregnant women attending the ANC unit of Bishoftu Hospital. Data were analyzed for descriptive statistics and Chi-square for trends using SPSS Version 15.0. P-values < or = 0.05 were considered significant.

RESULTS

A total of 7887 pregnant women were registered in the ANC unit of Bishoftu Hospital from January 2006 to June 2010. The overall HIV prevalence rate was 5.4%. High prevalence rates were observed in those aged between 25-45 years. There was a decline in HIV prevalence from 8.3% in 2006 to 4.3% in 2010. A total of 1247 pregnant women were tested together with their partner. Of these, in 3.1% of the cases, both partners tested positive and 4.9% were discordant couples where 2.4% were female positive and male negative while 2.5% were male positive and female negative.

CONCLUSIONS

A remarkable decline in HIV prevalence was observed during the five years period The study also revealed that relatively higher proportions of HIV infected persons are living in a serodiscordant partnership. The involvement of male partners in HIV counseling and testing and preventive interventions targeted at HIV-negative individuals with discordant partnerships are urgently needed.