MOTHER TO CHILD TRANSMISSION

MOTHER-TO CHIID TRANSMISSION  OF HIV.                                                     
The transmission  of HIV from a HIV positive  mother to her child during pregnancy, labour, delivery or breast feeding is called mother-to -child transmission. In the absence of any intervention, transmission rates range from 15%to 45%.This rate can be reduced to below 5% with effective interventions during the periods of pregnancy, labour, delivery and breast feeding.
These interventions primarily involve  antiretroviral treatment for the mother and a short course of antiretroviral drugs for the baby. They also include measures to prevent HIV acquisition  breast feeding practices. The new sustainable Development  Goals place heightened emphasis on prevention of mother-to-child transmission (PMTCT) in the context of better health for mothers and their children.
The World Health Organization (WHO)  works together with partners  to set global standards for HIV prevention, care and treatment for pregnant women, mothers and their children; and to develop evidence-based strategies and define global targets, baselines and indicators that promote the integration of PMTCT into maternal ,newborn and child health services, thus strengthening  health systems.
Following the release of new guidelines in 2015 WHO no longer recommends different  choices for PMTCT, but instead advices that  all pregnant  and breast feeding women should receive  antiretroviral therapy(ART) irrespective of clinical stage of disease or CD4 count. This approach, first pioneered by Malawi has been subsequently adopted by most countries with a high burden of HIV. As a result, at the end of 2014,over two thirds of pregnant  women with HIV in Sub-Saharan Africa were on ART. This coverage level exceeds that for non-pregnant adults.
The accelerated rool-out of ART for pregnant  women was an important  factor in the success of the Global plan towards the elimination of new HIV infections among children by 2015 and keeping their mothers alive. Between  2009 and late 2014,many countries saw the number of new infections in children drop by over 60% ;these countries are now closer than ever to eliminating mother-to-child transmission  as a public health concern
Mary wanjiru

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