DOI: 10.36347/sjams.2016.v04i08.075

Pages: 3120-3122

Vertical HIV transmission from mother to child accounts for more than 90% of paediatric AIDS. Prevention of mother to child transmission programme (PMTCT) provides, for both enrolment of infected pregnant women and their families in to antiretroviral therapy and prevention of HIV transmission from mother to child. Without any interventions up to 25-35% of children born to HIV positive mothers will be infected. This can be reduced to less than 1% with judicious PMTCT strategies. This study is thus aimed to assess the risks of HIV transmission and its predictors among HIV exposed infants who had follow up at PMTCT clinic, RIMS, Kadapa. Seroprevalence of HIV in our study was 0.29% and majority of seropositive women were primigravidae. Majority of them are married, house wives, from rural areas with low socioeconomic status and poor literacy rates. All 43 live infants of HIV positive mothers received antiretroviral prophylaxis. After counseling only 3 infants received replacement feeding and the rest 40 decided to feed their infants only breast milk. out of 24 babies who had already attained the age of 18 months, only 2 babies were confirmed as HIV seropositive. The records showed that these 2 babies had home deliveries and both infants and their mothers have not received ARV prophylaxis and the babies are exclusively breast fed for 6 months. There is requirement of increased awareness and opt – out HIV testing in all women during every pregnancy, appropriate prenatal care, ARV medication, institutional delivery, ARV prophylaxis , education on avoidance of breast feeding to minimise MTCT. Enhancement of commitment, support and judicious PMTCT regimens results in significant decline of HIV positive children.