Stephen W. Nicholas, M.D. is a good friend of (RED) and Founder and Director of the Columbia University International Family AIDS Program. He shares his outlook on the potential of eliminating mother-to-child transmission of HIV:
The UNAIDS Global Report released recently contained mostly encouraging news about the ongoing efforts to combat the global HIV/AIDS epidemic. In a nutshell, the number of people with HIV/AIDS in the world is stabilizing.
The greatest success is happening in the push to end mother-to-child transmission of the disease. In Sub-Saharan Africa – the region most profoundly impacted by the epidemic – new HIV infections among children have dropped 32%, according to the report, as more countries have adopted and implemented effective treatment regimens.
One of the United Nations’ Millennium Development Goals is to virtually eliminate mother-to-child transmission of HIV worldwide by 2015. It may sound like a short deadline for an awfully ambitious goal, but the fact is that it is entirely attainable.
We’ve seen how it can work here in the U.S. In New York State, in particular, the Department of Health AIDS Institute created programs and implemented policies over the last two decades that have essentially eliminated mother-to-child transmission of HIV.
From the start, New York State – and especially New York City -- has led the nation in the number of men, women and children affected by HIV/AIDS. At the peak of the epidemic in 1990, an estimated 475-759 HIV-infected babies were born in New York State; by 2008, that number dropped to an astonishingly low six – a 99% reduction.
How was this turnaround accomplished? Primarily through HIV screening of pregnant women and the administration of effective ARV medications to pregnant women and newborns. De-stigmatization of HIV testing and smart public health programs and policies were also critical factors.
While the HIV/AIDS epidemic hasn’t ended in New York, there has been so much success in preventing mother-to-child transmission and pediatric HIV/AIDS that we are able to realistically speak of its imminent elimination. It is a truly incredible public health success story that can be replicated in Africa.
The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria – with support from nations of the world and innovative private funding sources like (RED) – has joined a group of NGOs in making this a priority. If these organizations are given the necessary resources, we may be ready to welcome the first generation of babies born HIV-free in decades. It will be a critical milestone in the battle against HIV/AIDS and the basis of a solid foundation for the broader effort to eradicate this pandemic altogether.
The UNAIDS Global Report released recently contained mostly encouraging news about the ongoing efforts to combat the global HIV/AIDS epidemic. In a nutshell, the number of people with HIV/AIDS in the world is stabilizing.
The greatest success is happening in the push to end mother-to-child transmission of the disease. In Sub-Saharan Africa – the region most profoundly impacted by the epidemic – new HIV infections among children have dropped 32%, according to the report, as more countries have adopted and implemented effective treatment regimens.
One of the United Nations’ Millennium Development Goals is to virtually eliminate mother-to-child transmission of HIV worldwide by 2015. It may sound like a short deadline for an awfully ambitious goal, but the fact is that it is entirely attainable.
We’ve seen how it can work here in the U.S. In New York State, in particular, the Department of Health AIDS Institute created programs and implemented policies over the last two decades that have essentially eliminated mother-to-child transmission of HIV.
From the start, New York State – and especially New York City -- has led the nation in the number of men, women and children affected by HIV/AIDS. At the peak of the epidemic in 1990, an estimated 475-759 HIV-infected babies were born in New York State; by 2008, that number dropped to an astonishingly low six – a 99% reduction.
How was this turnaround accomplished? Primarily through HIV screening of pregnant women and the administration of effective ARV medications to pregnant women and newborns. De-stigmatization of HIV testing and smart public health programs and policies were also critical factors.
While the HIV/AIDS epidemic hasn’t ended in New York, there has been so much success in preventing mother-to-child transmission and pediatric HIV/AIDS that we are able to realistically speak of its imminent elimination. It is a truly incredible public health success story that can be replicated in Africa.
The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria – with support from nations of the world and innovative private funding sources like (RED) – has joined a group of NGOs in making this a priority. If these organizations are given the necessary resources, we may be ready to welcome the first generation of babies born HIV-free in decades. It will be a critical milestone in the battle against HIV/AIDS and the basis of a solid foundation for the broader effort to eradicate this pandemic altogether.
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