Africa: Elimination of Mother-to-Child HIV Transmission Possible - Children's Fund

[cory777]

Source: IPS

Nairobi — The number of pregnant women being tested for HIV and accessing treatment in Sub-Saharan Africa has shown significant progress - indicating that virtual elimination of mother-to-child transmission of the virus by 2015 is possible.

According to a new report Towards Universal Access, the proportion of pregnant women in Sub-Saharan Africa who received an HIV test increased from 43 percent in 2008 to 51 percent in 2009. The report by the World Health Organisation (WHO), the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS assessed HIV/AIDS progress in 144 low- and middle-income countries.

It found an estimated 24 percent of the approximately 125 million pregnant women in these countries received an HIV test in 2009, an increase from 21 percent in 2008 and eight percent in 2005. Fifty-four percent of HIV-positive pregnant women in Sub-Saharan Africa received antiretroviral drugs to prevent transmission to their children in 2009, up from 45 percent in 2008.

Speaking to IPS during the launch of the report in Nairobi on Sep.28, UNICEF regional director Elhadj As Sy said the progress made in the prevention of mother-to-child transmission is testimony of the fact that virtual elimination by 2015 is achievable.

Read more: http://allafrica.com/stories/201009290132.html

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[azurnoir]

1. yes it is indeed possible and I have seen evidence of that

while working in a Pediatric infectious disease clinic mothers found to be HIV positive early in pregnancy and given doses of AZT during the pregnancy seems to prevent the spread of the disease to the baby and in fact have seen women diagnosed in their first pregnancy go on to have 1 or additional more children and none are HIV positive