|
Preventing mother-to-child HIV transmission in low-income countries
May 06, 20082 articles discussing the prevention of HIV transmission from mother to child from PLoS Medicine
Can HIV transmission in pregnancy in low income settings be prevented with round the clock rapid testing in labor?
The World Health Organization has reported that over 500,000 children under 15 years of age become infected with HIV every year, mainly through mother-to-child transmission during pregnancy, childbirth, and breastfeeding (MTCT). Transmission around the time of birth can be prevented with antiretroviral drugs and safer delivery and feeding practices. However, in many low-income settings a woman may have few opportunities for HIV testing before she goes into labor. Therefore, programs in which immediate HIV testing is made available within the context of the labor ward, together with counseling and treatment services, may help to reduce the extent of MTCT in developing countries.
In this issue of PLoS Medicine, Nitika Pant Pai and colleagues evaluated such a program, carried out in a rural hospital in Maharashtra State, India. The researchers found that most women presenting in labor did not already know their HIV status, but the overwhelming majority accepted HIV testing on the labor ward. As part of the program, women were enrolled, received counseling, their test results, and referral for treatment interventions (if appropriate) within 40-60 minutes. As a result of the program, 15 women (of 1,222 in total who received HIV testing) were found to be HIV infected, of whom 11 were newly diagnosed at the point of care. These results demonstrate the feasibility of introducing rapid, round-the-clock HIV testing within a labor ward in a low-income setting.
Future challenges involve establishing how these findings can be applied more widely in other low-income settings to upgrade and expand existing HIV testing services.
In an expert commentary on the new research, David Celentano (Bloomberg School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University), who was not involved in the study, says: "It is clear that the labor and delivery setting offers the final opportunity to detect and prevent mother-to-child transmission of HIV. The program outlined by Pai and colleagues is efficient, acceptable, and leads to reduced morbidity."
http://medicine.plosjournals.org/perlserv/?request=get-document&doi=10.1371/journal.pmed.0050092
Public Library of Science
In this issue of PLoS Medicine, Nitika Pant Pai and colleagues evaluated such a program, carried out in a rural hospital in Maharashtra State, India. The researchers found that most women presenting in labor did not already know their HIV status, but the overwhelming majority accepted HIV testing on the labor ward. As part of the program, women were enrolled, received counseling, their test results, and referral for treatment interventions (if appropriate) within 40-60 minutes. As a result of the program, 15 women (of 1,222 in total who received HIV testing) were found to be HIV infected, of whom 11 were newly diagnosed at the point of care. These results demonstrate the feasibility of introducing rapid, round-the-clock HIV testing within a labor ward in a low-income setting.
Future challenges involve establishing how these findings can be applied more widely in other low-income settings to upgrade and expand existing HIV testing services.
In an expert commentary on the new research, David Celentano (Bloomberg School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University), who was not involved in the study, says: "It is clear that the labor and delivery setting offers the final opportunity to detect and prevent mother-to-child transmission of HIV. The program outlined by Pai and colleagues is efficient, acceptable, and leads to reduced morbidity."
http://medicine.plosjournals.org/perlserv/?request=get-document&doi=10.1371/journal.pmed.0050092
Public Library of Science
HIV Transmission News and Current HIV Transmission Events RSSUT Pathologists Believe They Have Pinpointed Achilles Heel of HIV
Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) researchers at The University of Texas Medical School at Houston believe they have uncovered the Achilles heel in the armor of the virus that continues to kill millions.
Extended infant antiretroviral prophylaxis reduces HIV risk during breastfeeding
In many resource-poor countries, infants born to mothers with HIV receive a single dose of nevirapine (NVP) and a one-week dose of zidovudine (ZDV) to prevent transmission of HIV from the mother to her newborn.
HIV Infection Stems From Few Viruses
A new study reveals the genetic identity of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), the version responsible for sexual transmission, in unprecedented detail.
Prisoner HIV program leads to continuum of medical care after release
By linking HIV positive prisoners to community-based medical care prior to release through an innovative program called Project Bridge, 95 percent of ex-offenders were retained in health care for a year after being released from incarceration, according to researchers from The Miriam Hospital.
An MUHC team evaluates a new saliva-based HIV test to speed up detection
The usual waiting period for the results of a HIV test can seem like an eternity, especially in emergency situations where results are needed immediately.
Involving partners of pregnant women in Africa to improve AIDS prevention
According to the World Health Organization, nearly three-quarters of the world's 40 million human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected people are living in Sub-Saharan Africa.
Breastfeeding now safer for infants of HIV-infected mothers
An antiretroviral drug already in widespread use in the developing world to prevent the transmission of HIV from infected mothers to their newborns during childbirth has also been found to substantially cut the risk of subsequent HIV transmission during breast-feeding.
Existing antiretroviral drugs may thwart vaginal HIV transmission, researchers report
Prescription drugs now used to treat human immunodeficiency virus infection in adults may prevent the vaginal transmission of HIV, researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center have found.
Study shows suppressing herpes virus may reduce infectiousness of HIV
A recent study of men co-infected with herpes simplex virus type 2 (HSV-2) and HIV revealed that drugs used to suppress HSV decrease the levels of HIV in the blood and rectal secretions, which may make patients less likely to transmit the virus.
HIV drug resistance risk in mothers reduced by combination of common drugs
New research from the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) shows that adding a single dose of two common anti-HIV drugs can prevent HIV-positive pregnant women from developing resistance to an entire class of drugs, potentially improving future treatment options.
More HIV Transmission News Articles
 | The Myth of Heterosexual AIDS: How a Tragedy Has Been Distorted by the Media and Partisan Politics by Michael Fumento |
 | Blood Feuds: Aids, Blood, and the Politics of Medical Disaster |
 | Blood Trail by Michael Sullivan |
 | Suicide Tuesday: Gay Men and the Crystal Meth Scare by Duncan Osborne |
 | Sex at Risk: Lifetime Number of Partners, Frequency of Intercourse, and the Low AIDS Risk of Vaginal Intercourse by Stuart Brody |
 | Culture and Sexual Risk: Anthropological Perspectives on AIDS by H. Brummelhuis |
 | Hotel Ritz--Comparing Mexican and U.S. Street Prostitutes: Factors in HIV/Aids Transmission by R Dennis Shelby, David J Bellis |
 | Preventing HIV Transmission: The Role of Sterile Needles and Bleach by Panel on Needle Exchange and Bleach Distribution Programs, National Research Council and Institute of Medicine |
| Risky Sexual Behaviours among Migrant Tea Workers in Kenya by Kennedy, Nyabuti Ondimu | |
 | Drug Injecting and HIV Infection (Social Aspects of Aids) by Gerry Stimson |
| © 2008 BrightSurf.com |