ALÉM DO DIAGNÓSTICO: UMA REVISÃO DA LITERATURA SOBRE O SOFRIMENTO PSÍQUICO EM MÃES PORTADORAS DE HIV

Abstract

The human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is an agent first identified in 1977 and 1978 in Haiti, United States and Central Africa. Today, it affects approximately 39 million individuals worldwide, with 54% being inhabitants of the south african area. Among these, mothers with HIV are emphasized as they are often forgotten by public policies. They exhibit a complex set of factors causing mental suffering which impacts directly on their well-being and how they perceive motherhood. Thus, the objective of this study was to investigate the main sources of psychological suffering for mothers living with HIV in the literature. To do so, articles published between 2018 and 2023 addressing the topic were sought in databases such as BVS, Lilacs, PMC, and Scielo, using the following combinations of descriptors and Boolean operators: 'breastfeeding' AND 'HIV' and 'aleitamento' AND 'HIV'. The resulting studies underwent screening and were subjected to the following exclusion criteria: lack of focus on the topic and study groups not including HIV-positive women with living children post-diagnosis. A total of 38 articles were obtained and classified into 6 themes related to the main sources of distress within the studied group. It is worth noting the predominance of studies conducted in Africa, probably because of the high prevalence in this continent and low research investments in the other ones. The most addressed theme was suffering related to interpersonal relationships, particularly concerning abandonment by loved ones, stigma, and cultural pressure. Reports of depressive symptoms, anxiety, sadness due to not breastfeeding and fear of vertical transmission were also common. Psychological suffering in mothers living with HIV remains a relatively understudied theme. It is present across diverse cultures and is caused by different factors, each one contributing in its own way to the individual patient's perception of illness.