Women's Interagency HIV Study (WIHS)

HIV in women is increasing worldwide, with women comprising approximately 14% of the total adult and adolescent AIDS cases, the highest proportion yet reported. The impact of AIDS is particularly severe in minority populations; among women, African Americans, and Hispanics combined now represent the majority of AIDS cases (76%) in the United States. AIDS is now the third leading cause of death for women aged 25 to 44 (after cancer and cardiovascular disease) and is the leading cause of death of African American women in this age group.

Studies of HIV and AIDS in women can play a unique role in testing new biological or socio-behavioral hypotheses at the population level and in linking basic science findings and laboratory methods to well-defined populations and communities. Research areas that are likely to draw more attention in the near future will include the study of pathogenicity and transmissibility of different HIV subtypes or recombinant forms and their interaction with variably susceptible individuals; the change in the scope of HIV natural history studies in the era of combination antiretroviral therapy; and the contribution of such studies to the design of a wide spectrum of prevention modalities (e.g., prevention of HIV and prevention of opportunistic infections). In addition, studies of natural history of HIV-related malignancies and active surveillance of malignancies in HIV infected and high-risk uninfected women may lead to new screening and prevention modalities in high-risk populations of women.

Participants will have study visits every 6 months. Questionnaires regarding sexual behavior, health care utilization, medical and obstetric/gynecological history, psychosocial factors, and sociodemographics will be completed by participants. Physical, gynecological, and lipodystrophy examinations will also be conducted at each visit, and current medication regimen will be noted. Blood and other bodily fluid samples will be collected and registered in both local and national repositories of the WIHS in conjunction with NIAID.