MINNEAPOLIS — The frightened teenager spent her 14th birthday at
Children’s Hospital in Minneapolis. For weeks, the doctors
didn’t know what was wrong — until she tested positive for HIV.
“I don’t remember anything else they said after the words HIV,”
said Ashley, who is now 22 and spoke on condition that her last
name not be published. “I just cried.” Ashley, who acquired the
virus from her mother, is part of a growing generation of
American children who have come of age with HIV — born with the
virus but living long, fairly normal lives, thanks to
antiretroviral drugs developed during the 1990s. But as this
generation ages, many are confronting their own set of
challenges: drug resistance, access to care, social stigma,
sexual relationships and uncertainty about the virus’ long-term
effects on their bodies. Young women must also consider the
challenges of being HIV-positive and pregnant. One risk for kids
who are born HIV-positive is that they may have a higher risk of
their virus becoming resistant to drug