Investigation of epidemic characteristics and prevention of mother to child HIV transmission program from 2012 to 2019 in Suzhou, China / 公共卫生与预防医学

ABSTRACT

Objective The vertical transmission of HIV, from mother to child remains one of the most important challenges all over the world. This study evaluated the implementation and effectiveness of prevention of mother to child HIV transmission program (PMTCT) from 2012 to 2019 in Suzhou. Methods The data used in this study were obtained from the PMTCT program carried out in hospitals and maternal and child health care centers of Suzhou from 2012 to 2019. The basic information of the HIV positive mothers including marital status, gravidity and parity history, educational background, date of HIV diagnosis, transmission route of HIV, information about the sexual partner, last menstrual period, current pregnancy outcome, and neonatal information were collected. The characteristics of the HIV positive mothers from 2012 to 2019 were analyzed. The statistical difference between the groups was evaluated by the χ2-test or Fisher's exact test as appropriate. P<0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results A total of 116 HIV positive women were diagnosed through prenatal examination. Among the 116 pregnant women, 75 gave birth to 76 live neonates. Only one infant was diagnosed HIV infected because of the HIV positive mother didn't take the anti-virus drugs until delivery. Conclusion The HIV prevalence of Suzhou city showed a low-level tendency. It's important to perform early diagnosis and early prevention for HIV positive pregnant women. There are improvements to make in the program implementation in Suzhou city.