Sexual behaviors of heterosexual women infected with HIV

Objective: To determine sexual and reproductive practices of heterosexual women with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection. Design: Questionnaire survey. Setting: A subspecialty infectious disease clinic associated with an urban midwestern private hospital. Patients: Heterosexual women infected with HIV. Results: Among the 25 responding women, all 14 sexually active women were monogamous, seven with uninfected partners. The proportion of abstinent women rose from 4% before HIV diagnosis to 44% after (p = 0.01). Forty-eight percent of women gave a history of physical or sexual abuse, all before HIV diagnosis. Four sexually active women (29%) did not use condoms; two of these had uninfected partners. The proportion of women using oral contraceptives decreased from 84% to 4% after HIV diagnosis (p = 0.01). Conclusions: Abstinence from sex and a history of physical or sexual abuse are prevalent among heterosexual women infected with HIV cared for in a private practice clinic. Almost one-third of sexually active women do not use safer sex practices.