Incident HIV Infection in Pregnant and Lactating Women and Its Effect on Mother-to-Child Transmission in South Africa

Dhayendre Moodley, Tonya Esterhuizen, Logan Reddy, Pravi Moodley, Bipraj Singh, Linda Ngaleka, Devan Govender
2011 Journal of Infectious Diseases  
We described HIV incidence and mother-to-child transmission (MTCT) among women during pregnancy and lactation. Forty-eight (3.4%) of 1396 women seroconverted during pregnancy or ,12 mo after delivery. This group of HIV-exposed children was at 2.3 times higher risk of infection (MTCT 20.5% [8 of 39] vs 9.0% (83 of 925]). An estimated 20% with CD41 cell counts ,350 would have been eligible for antiretroviral therapy (ART), yet all women with incident HIV infections are more likely to transmit HIV
more » ... to their children. To ensure optimal prevention of MTCT, all women who seroconvert during pregnancy or lactation should be considered for ART for the purpose of prevention of MTCT, and women with CD41 ,350 should continue to receive ART.
doi:10.1093/infdis/jir017 pmid:21398393 fatcat:47iiiyupfjdcxpmvolmk7wlryq