BACKGROUND Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) infection and low birth weight (LBW) continue to be significant public health concerns in many low-income countries including Ethiopia. Yet the effect of maternal HIV infection on birth weight has not been thoroughly explored and the existing studies reported opposing findings. We examined the association between maternal HIV infection and LBW in a tertiary hospital in Southern Ethiopia. METHODS A retrospective cohort study was conducted based on the medical records of 277 HIV-negative and 252 HIV-positive mothers who gave singleton live birth between September 2014 to August 2017 in Hawassa University Comprehensive Specialized Hospital, Southern Ethiopia. The recodes were identified using systematic sampling approach and relevant information were extracted by using pretested extraction form. Multivariable binary logit model was fitted to examine the relationship between the exposure and outcome while adjusting for potential confounders. Adjusted odds ratio (AOR) and 95% confidence intervals (CI) is used for summarizing the findings of the analysis. RESULTS The mean (± standard deviation) birth weight of infants born to HIV-negative women (3.1 ± 0.7 kg) was significantly higher than those born to HIV-positive counterparts (3.0 ± 0.6 kg) (p = 0.020). The prevalence of LBW was also significantly higher in the HIV-exposed group (22.2%) than the non-exposed group (13.7%) (p = 0.011). In the logit model adjusted for multiple covariates, HIV-positive women had four times increased odds than HIV-negative women to give birth to LBW infant(AOR = 4.03, 95% CI: 2.01-8.06). Other significant predictors of LBW were rural place of residence (AOR = 2.04, 95% CI: 1.16-3.60), prenatal anemia (AOR = 3.17, 95% CI: 1.71-5.90), chronic hypertension (AOR = 3.68, 95% CI: 1.10-12.46) and preeclampsia (AOR = 6.80, 95% CI: 3.00-15.38). CONCLUSION Maternal HIV infection is associated with increased odds of LBW. HIV prevention activities are also likely to contribute for the reduction of LBW.

中文翻译：

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埃塞俄比亚南部一家三级医院的母亲艾滋病毒感染与出生体重之间的关联：回顾性队列研究。

背景技术在包括埃塞俄比亚在内的许多低收入国家中，人类免疫缺陷病毒（HIV）感染和低出生体重（LBW）仍然是重大的公共卫生问题。然而，尚未充分探讨母体艾滋病毒感染对出生体重的影响，现有研究报告了相反的发现。我们在埃塞俄比亚南部的一家三级医院检查了母体HIV感染与LBW之间的关联。方法回顾性队列研究基于2014年9月至2017年8月在埃塞俄比亚南部哈瓦萨大学综合专科医院就诊的277名HIV阴性和252名HIV阳性母亲的单胎活产。使用系统抽样方法识别重新编码，并使用预先测试的提取形式提取相关信息。拟合多变量二进制logit模型，以检查暴露量和结果之间的关系，同时调整潜在的混杂因素。调整后的优势比（AOR）和95％置信区间（CI）用于汇总分析结果。结果艾滋病毒阴性女性婴儿的平均出生体重（±3.1千克）（3.1±0.7千克）显着高于艾滋病毒阳性女性婴儿的平均出生体重（3.0±0.6千克）（p = 0.020）。暴露于HIV的组（22.2％）的LBW患病率也显着高于未暴露组（13.7％）（p = 0.011）。在针对多个协变量进行调整的logit模型中，HIV阳性妇女的分娩率是HIV阴性妇女的四分之一（AOR = 4.03，95％CI：2.01-8.06）。LBW的其他重要预测指标是农村居民区（AOR = 2.04，95％CI：1.16-3.60），产前贫血（AOR = 3.17，95％CI：1.71-5.90），慢性高血压（AOR = 3.68，95％CI ：1.10-12.46）和先兆子痫（AOR = 6.80，95％CI：3.00-15.38）。结论母体HIV感染与LBW几率增加有关。艾滋病毒预防活动也可能有助于减少低出生体重。