Desire to procreate among people living with HIV/AIDS: Determinants in Ethiopia: A cross-sectional study

Abstract

This study focused on the assessment of determinants of fertility desire among people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) in Mekelle town, Tigray, in Northern Ethiopia. An institution based cross sectional study was conducted, by interviewing members of the PLWHA associations in Mekelle town. Three hundred and seven subjects participated with a response rate of 95%, the median age of the respondents was 32. Majority (60%) of the respondents were males, 43% of all respondents were single and had a median monthly income of Birr 600.00 (35 USD), Majority of all respondents 203 (66.1%) expressed a desire to procreate, while 104 (33.9%) of them had no desire to procreate. House wives were 5.65 times more likely to want a child as compared with the other respondents OR=5.65 (1.29, 24.74). A considerable number of PLWHA expressed their desire to have a child in the future. Policy makers and health practitioners need to consider and plan for the implications of increased numbers of PLWHA who may choose to have children and should implement strategies so as to address PLWHA’s fertility issues in more comprehensive manner.   Key words: PLWHA, procreate, determinants.