Maternal-Newborn Human Immunodeficiency Virus Infection in Harlem

HIV infection and prevention of mother-to-child transmission in childbearing women: La Romana, Dominican Republic, 2002-2006

“…The observation that multivitamins reduce preeclampsia among HIV-infected women suggests that vitamin deficiency may be an explanation (32). The association between maternal HIV and low birth weight has been previously reported (33).…”

Risk factors for HIV in pregnant women

“…We are unaware of any studies comparing HIV risk factors for pregnant women with those of non-pregnant women. However, in the Harlem study 30 , the proportion of HIV-infected pregnant women who admitted ever using injected drugs was signi® cantly lower than that for women with reported AIDS from the same city (21% vs 61%). The higher proportion of IDUs among women with AIDS may merely represent the risk factor pro® le for women acquiring HIV infection earlier in the epidemic.…”

“…Similarly, in San Francisco 36 , women with no prenatal care reported HIV risk factors more frequently and had a higher HIV seroprevalence than did prenatal clinic attendees (1.5% vs 0.7%). In western Palm Beach County 31 , the HIV seroprevalence was 14.3% 30 Black race 30,32± 35 Hispanic race 34,35 Geographic factors Residence in an urban area 33 Residence in the Northeast or Southern USA 33 Residence in New York, District of Columbia, New Jersey or Florida 34 Residence in the San Francisco Bay area 35 among women with no prenatal care compared with 5.1% among patients attending public prenatal clinics and 0.5% among private patients receiving prenatal care. In New York City, 5 of 10 HIVpositive women had received no prenatal care compared to only 14.9% of HIV-negative women 29 .…”

Identification and Care of HIV-Exposed and HIV-Infected Infants, Children, and Adolescents in Foster Care

“…4 An innercity study found that newborns placed in foster care at the time of hospital discharge were 8 times more likely to have been born to HIV-infected women than were newborns discharged to the care of their mothers. 5 In addition to the increased risk of perinatally acquired HIV infection for those in foster care, children and adolescents in foster care may have been sexually abused, placing them at risk for acquisition of HIV infection. Adolescents who use drugs or are sexually active are also at risk for acquisition of HIV infection, and adolescent risky behavior may precede placement in foster care or may occur while in foster care.…”