TITLE:
Status of New HIV Infections among Infants Born of HIV Positive Mothers on Prevention of Mother to Child Transmission at Kisii Teaching and Referral Hospital, Kenya
AUTHORS:
Mercy Nyanchama Abere, Grace Moraa Omoni, Theresa Mary Odero, Peter Ondieki Atai
KEYWORDS:
HIV Exposed Infants, HIV Status, HIV Positive Mothers, PMTCT Follow Up, New HIV Infections
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Pediatrics,
Vol.8 No.4,
December
25,
2018
ABSTRACT: Introduction: The goal of Prevention of
Mother to child Transmission (PMTCT) is to minimize new HIV infection with
PMTCT interventions which can reduce to as low as 2%. Gusii region is number 5
among counties that contribute to 65% of new HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Virus)
in infections in Kenya. The study was to determine the prevalence of new HIV infections
among infants (3 - 18 months) born of HIV positive mothers on PMTCT follow up
at Kisii Teaching and Referral Hospital (KTRH). Method: This was a
descriptive cross sectional study involving 96 infants born of HIV positive
mothers on PMTCT programme at Kisii Teaching and Referral Hospital (KTRH) was
conducted. The infants were between 3 to 18 months of age. The infants were
investigated for their HIV status and factors associated with prevalence. The
data collection was done during postnatal checkups, antiretroviral treatment
follow up and immunization schedule. Data was analyzed using Statistical
Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 20. Results: 13.5% (95% C.I =
10.1% to 16.9%) were found to be positive despite their mothers being on PMTCT
program. There was no significant difference between gender and status of the
infant (χ2 = 0.758, df =
1, p-value = 0.0384). Conclusion: The study confirms that there are
still new HIV infections despite being followed up in the PMTCT program. The
new HIV infections were associated with mixed feeding. Recommendation: Counseling on Infant feeding, use of ant-retroviral treatment and support from
partners should be strengthen in the PMTCT program to ensure reduction of new
HIV infections.