Share

Hope for babies of HIV+ moms

Two studies support breastfeeding by HIV-positive women in developing countries, showing that an extended anti-HIV regimen can curb babies' infection rates and breastfeeding improves survival in those infected by their mothers.

A clinical study in Malawi followed 3 016 babies of HIV-positive mothers for two years. Breastfed infants who received prolonged preventative treatment had HIV infection rates less than half of those who received standard care.

Newborns whose mothers are HIV-positive were treated with anti-HIV drugs during the first 14 weeks of life, to reduce the likelihood they will be infected while breastfeeding.

The current standard is one shot at birth and a week's treatment with another anti-HIV drug.

"In poor countries where sanitation is a problem, exclusive breastfeeding appears to confer the greatest benefits to infant health and survival, even in mothers with HIV" said Duane Alexander, director of the Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, which sponsored two studies appearing in the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM).

"Extended treatment with nevirapine greatly reduces the chances that infants will be infected with HIV through breast milk," he added. "The National Institutes of Health is now sponsoring additional studies to determine the most effective treatments to prevent the spread of HIV through breast milk."

Transmission risk halved
In the Malawi study, after nine months, 5.2 percent of infants treated with nevirapine, and 6.4 percent of those treated with the two anti-retrovirals over the same period, contracted HIV from their mothers compared to 10.6 percent for those who received the usual short-term preventative care.

A second clinical study also published in NEJM and carried out in Zambia, meanwhile found that breastfeeding appeared to improve survival rates of newborns whose mothers passed HIV on to them.

The studies may offer new insight into difficult choices parents face in developing countries as they decide between breastfeeding and possibly passing HIV through breast milk, and formula feeding which can undercut natural immunity against other diseases. – (Sapa)

Read more:
HIV/Aids Centre

June 2008

We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()
Editorial feedback and complaints

Contact the public editor with feedback for our journalists, complaints, queries or suggestions about articles on News24.

LEARN MORE