Low HIV prevalence among childbearing women of aboriginal origin

Neonatal HIV antibody surveys are invaluable in monitoring the HIV epidemic in women of reproductive age. In Canada, the highest provincial rates have been observed in Newfoundland at 0.09% [95% confidence interval (CI), 0.05-0.15] of pregnant women and Quebec at 0.06% (95% CI, 0.04-0.08) of childbearing women. The 5-year (1989-1993) average for Montreal revealed the highest rate of any urban setting in Canada: 0.17% (95% CI, 0.14-0.19). We undertook a study to determine HIV seroprevalence estimates among childbearing women in regions where a high proportion of the population are of aboriginal origin: Baffin Island, Northwest Territories; Nunavik, Quebec where the Inuit comprise over 90% of the population (B. Schnarch, personal communication, 1996); and James Bay, Quebec where over 95% of the population is of Cree origin (E. Robinson, personal communication, 1995).