Barriers to Preventing Mother to Child Transmission of AIDS in a Resource Limited Setting - A Failing Health Initiative

Four hundred and twenty thousand children under the age of fifteen were infected with HIV/AIDS in 2007: approximately 90 percent of these infections were due to mother-to-child transmission (MTCT). While the prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV/AIDS has been reduced to 1-2% in the United States, significant challenges remain in preventing mother to child transmission (PMTCT) in resource-limited countries. In recent years PMTCT therapies have been designed that are both cost-effective and feasible for resource-poor countries . Yet, thousands of infants are still being born HIV-positive every year, proving treatment availability alone does not constitute success. The percentage of HIV-positive pregnant women treated with antiretrovirals (ARVs) is well-published, but analyzing the efficacy of these prevention campaigns is difficult. There is little statistical data regarding how many HIV-positive children are born to women who have been treated with ARVs. Increased monitoring of PMTCT efforts is needed. Other than breastfeeding, few risk factors for poor adherence to treatment have been studied. I lived and worked in Uganda for six weeks in May and realized that we're accepting a status quo that is failing HIV-positive pregnant women and their unborn children. There are basic questions we aren't asking that could greatly improve the way we assist these women.