European Commission Publishes HIV Vertical Transmission Guidelines

By Stephen Pincock
Originally published by Reuters Health, June 20, 2002

LONDON (Reuters Health) — New guidelines for preventing the spread of HIV from infected women to their infants were released by the European Commission on Thursday, continuing the international focus on vertical transmission that has been stressed recently by US president George Bush and the United Nations.

The new guidelines are the first ever produced by the European Commission. Their announcement comes 1 day after the US announced a $500 million programme designed to reduce mother-to-child transmission in Africa and the Caribbean.

Last month, UNAIDS chief Dr. Peter Piot said HIV/AIDS prevention programs should focus on children and mothers, noting that the virus kills 1600 children a day, according to UNAIDS.

European Research Commissioner Philippe Busquin said the guidelines, produced by 15 research teams from seven European countries, were a good example of the benefits of cooperation at a European Union-wide level. "HIV knows no borders and we need to bring together the best specialists to stem the epidemic and find appropriate treatments," he said in a statement.

Taking appropriate precautions and using antiretroviral therapy during pregnancy, labour and after birth can cut the risk of mother-to-child transmission from 15%-20% to less than 2%, the European Commission said.

The guidelines are designed to promote best practice and foster awareness of effective interventions, a spokesman for European Research Commissioner Philippe Busquin told Reuters Health.

The European Union's guidelines are due to be published in the journal AIDS on June 28, a spokesman for Busquin told Reuters Health.

They recommend that all pregnant women, and their partners if possible, have an HIV test.

They also suggest that HIV-infected women be offered the option of delivering their child through caesarean section, and that all HIV-infected women be given antiretroviral therapy during pregnancy as well as antiretroviral therapy given to the child immediately after birth. Details of the most appropriate combinations of drugs and timing are included in the report.

The guidelines also advise HIV-infected mothers against breastfeeding.