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HIV and women
When HIV was first discovered, it mainly seemed to affect gay men, and very few infections were seen in women in this country or in the USA. Over the years this has changed and over a quarter of all HIV cases in the UK are in women and more women than men are infected with HIV world-wide.
Because most of the early cases of HIV that were studied were in gay men, doctors learnt more about the way HIV affects the immune system of men than women. Less was also known about the effectiveness of anti-HIV drugs in women than men. However, as the numbers of HIV-positive women have increased, this has gradually changed.
It's now known that:
- HIV causes immune damage in women at the same rate as it does in men.
- Men and women are equally likely to develop AIDS.
- Some key tests used to monitor the effects of HIV on the immune system need to be interpreted differently in women and men.
- HIV can affect a woman's menstrual cycle and reproductive health.
- Women can get some AIDS-defining illnesses which men can't get. These are related to women’s reproductive health.
- An HIV-positive woman can pass HIV onto her baby but this can be prevented in nearly all cases.
- Women who breastfeed and are ill with HIV have an increased risk of dying.
- Anti-HIV drugs work just as well in women as men, but the side-effects of some drugs may be different in women.
This booklet provides information on all of these issues, and also includes some general information on living with HIV.