The human immunodeficiency virus, or HIV, is a disease that systematically destroys the body's immune system, according to MedlinePlus, a service of the U.S. National Library of Medicine and the National Institutes of Health. The disease can spread via unprotected sexual intercourse, but can also be passed on from mother to child during pregnancy.
As of 2002, an estimated 160,000 women of childbearing age were believed to have HIV. Between 2004 and 2008, the number of pregnant HIV-infected women grew by 35 percent, notes the World Health Organization.
Breast Milk
Breast milk is a recommended way of treating infants that have HIV, notes the World Health Organization. Moreover, taking breast milk during the first 12 months of life can dramatically increase the infant's probability of survival, because the immune system can initially benefit from the nutrients provided.
Nevirapine
Current data shows that using the antiretroviral nevirapine suppresses HIV symptoms and even lowers the risk of HIV transmission between mother and child, notes explain Alex H. Krist, and Amy Crawford-Faucher. The use of antiretroviral medications in general may suppress HIV. Antiretroviral treatment may begin during pregnancy as a preventive measure, but it may continue in the event of infant HIV infection, explains the World Health Organization.
Pneumonia and Trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole
HIV-infected infants usually contract other kinds of diseases as a result of their impaired immune response. Pneumocystis carinii, for example, is a type of pneumonia tagged as a sign of HIV infection spread from mother to baby, explain Alex H. Krist and Amy Crawford-Faucher. Trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole is often used to treat the HIV-induced pneumonia, although it is not recommended for infants less than 1-month-old.
Vaccines
An HIV infection requires slight modifications to an infected infant's normal vaccination program, note Alex H. Krist and Amy Crawford-Faucher. HIV greatly increases an infant's risk of developing tuberculosis, syphilis and hepatitis. Therefore, getting vaccinated against these diseases is necessary, though vaccines containing live viruses should be utilized with great caution. The actual efficacy of vaccination may depend on the extent of HIV infection.
Zidovudine
Zidovudine is a typical antiretroviral medication that can be used to treat HIV-infected infants, note Alex H. Krist and Amy Crawford-Faucher and FamilyDoctor.org. Infants that have been exposed to HIV during birth may begin taking zidovudine about eight hours after delivery for about six weeks, explain Alex H. Krist and Amy Crawford-Faucher.
References
- "American Family Physician"; Management of Newborns Exposed to Maternal HIV Infection; Alex H. Krist, MD, and Amy Crawford-Faucher, MD; 2002 May 15
- FamilyDoctor.org: HIV, Pregnancy and AZT
- MedlinePlus: HIV Infection
- World Health Organization: New HIV Recommendations to Improve Health, Reduce Infections and Save Lives
- World Health Organization: Mother-to-child Transmission of HIV Data and Statistics
