Tailoring sexual and reproductive health services to meet the needs of people living with the human immuno-deficiency virus
(HIV) is a growing concern but there are few insights into these issues where HIV is most prevalent. This cross-sectional
study investigated the fertility intentions and associated health care needs of 459 women and men, not sampled as intimate
partners of each other, living with HIV in Cape Town, South Africa. An almost equal proportion of women (55%) and men (43%)
living with HIV, reported not intending to have children as were open to the possibility of having children (45 and 57%, respectively).
Overall, greater intentions to have children were associated with being male, having fewer children, living in an informal
settlement and use of antiretroviral therapy. There were important gender differences in the determinants of future childbearing
intentions, with being on HAART strongly associated with women’s fertility intentions. Gender differences were also apparent
in participants’ key reasons for wanting children. A minority of participants had discussed their reproductive intentions
and related issues with HIV health care providers. There is an urgent need for intervention models to integrate HIV care with
sexual and reproduction health counseling and services that account for the diverse reproductive needs of these populations.
Keywords HIV - Reproductive intentions - Influencing factors - HAART - South Africa