HIV and childbirth
The risk of your baby contracting HIV is reduced if you have a planned caesarean section. This is usually scheduled to take place for the 38th week of pregnancy. If your labour begins early, the surgical delivery will be performed sooner. Taking anti-HIV drugs during a caesarean delivery reduces the risk of you passing on HIV to your baby to very low levels. However, as with all surgery, caesarean delivery carries some risks. These risks should be explained to you before you agree (give consent) to the procedure.
You are strongly recommended to have a caesarean delivery if you have a detectable viral load, or if the only anti-HIV drug you took during pregnancy was AZT.
If your viral load has been consistently below 50 copies/ml, then you may be able to have an actively managed vaginal birth. This means that your doctors and midwife will monitor you carefully and make sure that your labour doesn’t last too long to reduce the risk of you passing on HIV to your baby.
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