Jakarta (ANTARA) – A pediatrician at Harapan Kita Hospital, dr. Dwinanda Aidina, Sp.A(K) said that transmission or transmission of HIV to infants through breast milk is believed to have a higher risk than the method of transmission through pregnancy and childbirth.
“According to the data, (transmission via) ASI is the (risk) highest. From the data, about 5-10 percent of pregnancies, 10-15 percent of deliveries. From breastfeeding is higher, 15 -20 percent,” Dwinanda said in a virtual talk on the Ministry of Health’s Health Radio he attended on Friday in Jakarta.
She added that the risk of transmission increases to 30-40% if a mother with an immune-destroying virus or HIV does not get ARV treatment during pregnancy, other than vaginal delivery, and breastfeeds her baby regularly, especially long-term.
That said, Dwinanda said mothers with HIV are advised not to give breast milk and can instead provide PASI (breast milk replacer) in the form of infant formula. This is done as an effort risk-free transmission or zero new infections.
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In some cases, breastfeeding is still permitted but must meet requirements such as the mother must be in a condition where the virus is no longer detected in the blood and she is confident that she can give exclusive breastfeeding and it is not permitted mix feed.
Even so, he recalled that even if the mother’s HIV virus is not detectable in the blood, even this condition does not guarantee that the HIV virus is not in the mother’s milk.
Therefore, mothers living with HIV are advised to consider it carefully. Also consider the risk of transmission in case of injury while breastfeeding and bleeding.
“In fact, breast milk is the best, yes. But we also look at each individual. See the risks, good or bad, or benefit and riskbetween breast milk and infant formula. So it has to be discussed with his mother again,” Dwianda said.
It guarantees that the administration of PASI or infant formula will not interfere with the child’s development provided that the administration is appropriate for the indications, development and weight of the child.
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Even so, there are a number of drawbacks to PASI because it is not one hundred percent the same as breast milk as a baby may not have its mother’s antibodies.
“The downside might be that in infant formula you have to prepare it really sterile because it has to be prepared with hot water, the bottles have to be sterile, it might be a bit of a pain. So the preparation has to be considered too,” he added.
To boost efforts to prevent transmission from HIV-infected mothers, Dwianda added that infants will be given antiretroviral drugs (ARVs) of the type zidovudine or in combination with other ARVs such as nevirapine if the mother still chooses to breastfeed.
He explained that the preventive drug was given for 6 weeks, after which it was replaced with co-trimoxazole prophylaxis. While the drug is being administered, the child should continue to be evaluated for growth and development and continue to be screened or tested for HIV.
“In his development, the child must also be screened. It will usually be checked, we call it early childhood diagnosis, at 6 weeks of age and 4 or 6 months of age. Usually tested twice if the baby is arriving with HIV infection. While we also monitor symptoms and growth and development and so on,” Dwianda said.
This news was published on Antaranews.com with the headline: Doctors call the transmission of HIV to babies through breast milk high risk
