Women and HIV infection, current status of the problem

The increase in the number of people infected with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and increasing the share of women among them, as well as annual growth in the number of births to HIV-infected women define extraordinary relevance for the prevention of HIV transmission from mother to child. Tactics to prevent HIV transmission from mother to child is determined by a set of epidemiological, clinical and laboratory parameters and selected for each individual woman after consultation with the appropriate professionals. It is shown that the most important factor affecting the likelihood of HIV transmission from mother to fetus and child, is the concentration of virus in the blood of women (the so-called viral load - VL) during pregnancy and childbirth, so it is important to achieve it undetectable levels as early as possible in pregnancy. As the activities carried out in the framework of this prevention, the importance of timely diagnosis of HIV infection and identifying high risk of HIV infection in pregnant women, chemoprophylaxis (CP) carried out with the help of antiretroviral drugs (ARVs), woman and child, the tactics of pregnancy and childbirth, and also keeping the child in the first half year of life, including avoidance of breastfeeding. Appointment ARV HIV-infected women may be necessary not only to prevent infection of the child, but also to treat the woman. In appointing ART necessary to minimize potential adverse effects of ARV drugs on the fetus, which is especially important in the I trimester of pregnancy. Therefore, the starting date of receiving ARVs in pregnant should be optimal from the point of view of the effectiveness of the treatment of women, the effectiveness of prophylaxis of infection of the child and the safety of the fetus.

the woman, pregnancy, HIV, prevention, antiretroviral therapy