Prevention of mother-to-child HIV transmission in South Africa: The dawning of a new era

HIV Therapy

Volumn 4, Issue 2, 2010, Pages 127-130

  Horwood, Christiane ^a  

^a UNIVERSITY OF KWAZULU NATAL   (South Africa)

Author keywords

[No Author keywords available]

Indexed keywords

ANTI HUMAN IMMUNODEFICIENCY VIRUS AGENT;

ACQUIRED IMMUNE DEFICIENCY SYNDROME; CHILDHOOD MORTALITY; EDITORIAL; HUMAN; HUMAN IMMUNODEFICIENCY VIRUS; HUMAN IMMUNODEFICIENCY VIRUS INFECTION; IMMUNIZATION; MATERNAL MORTALITY; NONHUMAN; PRACTICE GUIDELINE; PREVALENCE; SOUTH AFRICA; VERTICAL TRANSMISSION; WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION;

EID: 77951676586     PISSN: 17584310     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.2217/hiv.10.7     Document Type: Editorial

References (12)

1. Chopra M, Daviaud E, Pattinson R, Fonn S, Lawn JE: Saving the lives of South Africa's mothers, babies, and children: can the health system deliver? Lancet 374 (9692), 835-846 (2009). □Explains the South African paradox of deteriorating health outcomes, despite increasing resource allocation to healthcare, provides estimates of reductions in child and maternal mortality that would be achieved by full coverage of existing interventions, and describes how this could be achieved.
2. Abdool Karim SS, Churchyard GJ, Abdool Karim Q, Lawn SD: HIV infection and tuberculosis in South Africa: an urgent need to escalate the public health response. Lancet 374 (9693), 921-933 (2009).
3. Chopra M, Lawn JE, Sanders D et al.: Achieving the health millennium development goals for South Africa: challenges and priorities. Lancet 374 (9694), 1023-1031 (2009).
4. Guay LA, Musoke P, Fleming T et al.: Intrapartum and neonatal single-dose nevirapine compared with zidovudine for prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV-1 in Kampala, Uganda: HIVNET 012 randomised trial. Lancet 354 (9181), 795-802 (1999).
5. Tonwe-Gold B, Ekouevi DK, Viho I et al.: Antiretroviral treatment and prevention of peripartum and postnatal HIV transmission in West Africa: evaluation of a two-tiered approach. PLoS Med. 4 (8), E257 (2007).
6. Stringer EM, Chi BH, Chintu N et al.: Monitoring effectiveness of programmes to prevent mother-to-child HIV transmission in lower-income countries. Bull. World Health Organ. 86 (1), 57-62 (2008). □Makes a case for the importance of population-based monitoring of prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV (PMTCT) programs and looks at different methodologies that could be used.
7. Rollins N, Little K, Mzolo S, Horwood C, Newell ML: Surveillance of mother-to-child transmission prevention programmes at immunization clinics: the case for universal screening. AIDS 21 (10), 1341-1347 (2007). □Describes a methodology for population-based monitoring of PMTCT programs, and the fndings of a PMTCT evaluation in KwaZulu-Natal.
8. Violari A, Cotton MF, Gibb DM et al.: Early antiretroviral therapy and mortality among HIV-infected infants. N. Engl. J. Med. 359 (21), 2233-2244 (2008). □Large South African study showing substantial benefits for morbidity and mortality of early initiation of antiretroviral therapy in HIV-infected infants.
9. Jones SA, Sherman GG, Varga CA: Exploring socio-economic conditions and poor follow-up rates of HIV-exposed infants in Johannesburg, South Africa. AIDS Care 17 (4), 466-470 (2005).
10. Doherty TM, McCoy D, Donohue S: Health system constraints to optimal coverage of the prevention of mother-to-child HIV transmission programme in South Africa: lessons from the implementation of the national pilot programme. Afr. Health Sci. 5 (3), 213-218 (2005).
11. Prendergast A, Cotton M, Gibb D: When should antiretroviral therapy be started for HIV-infected infants in resource-limited settings? Future HIV Ther. 2 (3), 201-208 (2008). □Describes the continuing burden of HIV disease and discusses the feasibility of early HIV diagnosis and antiretroviral therapy for infants in resource-limited settings.
12. Lehmann U: Strengthening human resources for primary health care. In: South African Health Review 2008. Health Systems Trust (2008). □Describes the crisis in the health work force in South Africa, which is becoming progressively weaker as skilled health professionals leave the public sector, and proposes solutions.