Lise-Lott Rydstrom
Karolinska Institutet, Sweden
Title: To grow up with an innate or early acquired HIV infection
Biography:
Abstract:
Aim: The aim is to describe how children growing up with an early acquired HIV and their legal guardian’s experiences the life of these children.
Today, more than 2.6 million children aged 0-15 years are living with an HIV infection in the world. The majority of these children are infected by mother to child transmission and have a perinatally acquired HIV. As a result of better and more accessible treatment children are expected to become adults and live a long life. Data concerning living with perinatally acquired HIV or being a legal guardian of a child with perinatally acquired HIV is scarce. A nationwide study on children growing up with an early acquired HIV and their legal guardian’s in Sweden indicates that these children do well related to health related quality of life and HIV related stigma. Studies have also shown that legal guardians rate their children’s health related quality of life and HIV related stigma relatively consistent. However, disclosure is one issue where children’s and legal guardian’s expectations are diverge.