Home

  • Home
    • » e-Newsletters

Early diagnosis and treatment critical for HIV-infected babies

Infection Control Monitor, July 27, 2007

HIV-infected babies given antiretroviral drugs in the first weeks of life are four times more likely to survive than those treated only after they showed signs of illness, according to new research.

Authors of the study hope the research will change existing guidelines for the treatment of HIV-infected infants. World Health Organization guidelines now call for physicians to administer drugs only after infants show signs of disease or a weakening immune system.

In a study of 377 infants between the ages of six and 12 weeks in South Africa, drugs given even though the babies appeared healthy helped them live longer than babies who started therapy after showing signs of disease, The findings from a study sponsored by the U.S. National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease were presented this week at an Internaional AIDS Society conference in Sydney, Australia.

Most Popular