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Viet Nam moves to reduce mother-to-child HIV transmission

22/10/2007

Viet Nam has set the target of providing preventive treatment for all pregnant women who test positive for HIV in order to reduce the rate of mother-to-child HIV transmission to 10 percent of all births by HIV-infected mothers by 2010.

The Viet Nam HIV/AIDS Prevention and Control Department estimates that at present close to 6,000 HIV-infected women become pregnant each year and as a result, nearly 2,000 babies contract the virus from their mothers annually.

The department head, Duong Quoc Trong, provided the figures to participants at a seminar on the care of HIV-infected mother and preventive treatment of mother-to-child HIV transmissions, held in Ha Noi on August 30.

The health official warned that without proper care and treatment, there may be an increase in the number of HIV-infected children.

Pilot programmes on preventing mother-to-child HIV transmission have been carried out on a trial basis in the northern provinces of Quang Ninh and Lang Son, the northern port city of Hai Phong , Ho Chi Minh City and southern An Giang province.

VNA