Knowledge on prevention of mother to child transmission of HIV among women of reproductive age group

Introduction: Mother to child transmission (MTCT) of HIV continues to be a significant public health concern. MTCT has a deleterious effect on child survival, hence its knowledge is of utmost importance for prevention of transmission of HIV from mother to child. Materials and Methods: A cross sectional descriptive study was conducted during October –December 2013 among women attending antiretroviral therapy (ART) clinic. A semistr u c t u r e d q u e sti o n n a ir e c o n sist e d o f sociodemographic characteristics, clinical characteristics and knowledge about MTCT was administered to 80 women. Results: The mean age of the respondents was 24.89 ± 3.62 years and 30% were illiterate. The majority (62.5%) of them were belonged to an upper lower class. Atotal 47.5% of the respondents were aware of their HIV status since 1-5 years. The majority (82.5%) perceived that HIV can be transmitted from mother to child. Many of the respondents felt that MTCT of HIV may occur during breastfeeding 49 (74.24%), pregnancy 48 (72.72%) and labour 42 (63.63%). The majority 62 (93.93%) of the respondents were aware that MTCT of HIV can be prevented. Avoidance of breastfeeding was the most frequently mentioned strategy by 40 (64.51%) respondents, followed by maternal ARV prophylaxis by 35 (56.45%) and caesarean section by 25 (40.32%) of the respondents. Conclusion: The study demonstrates a relatively good level of knowledge on MTCT of HIV, but some knowledge gaps on certain specific aspects still remained which needs to be addressed for effective prevention of mother to child transmission of HIV