Why 70,000 Nigerian babies are HIV affected by UNAIDS, others

March 16, 2010

The Joint United Nation's Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) Executive Director, Dr. Michel Sidibe, has explained why about 70,000 children are affected by the Human Immuno-deficiency Virus HIV). Speaking at the stakeholders' forum and inspection of medical facilities on Wednesday at the Nigerian Institute of Medical Research (NIMR), Yaba, Lagos, as part of his working visit to Nigeria, Sidibe observed that 400,000 African children were paediatrically infected with HIV. According to him, 70,000 of this number are Nigerian infants, all due to deficiencies in ante-natal and post-natal care, especially among women that are HIV positive. He said: "It is no longer acceptable for me that we continue to have 400,000 babies born in Africa with the HIV virus growing in their system, knowing that 30 per cent of them would die before reaching their first year anniversary. "In Nigeria, 70,000 babies are born with HIV, we can stop that. Those babies could be our hope of tomorrow. They could contribute to the requisite national transformation. And we all have to note that anytime we miss the opportunity to make sure that these babies become HIV-negative, it means also that we will miss the mothers. The mothers would have a high tendency to die of HIV because we will not have the opportunity to give these drugs, which are available. So today, the concern is not just to talk about mother-to-child-transmission, rather an integrated approach at curbing the menace". Sidibe added that there was need to change the society's mindset about HIV-AIDS, to integrate even the fathers into the awareness programme and also to check the erroneous belief that HIV-AIDS patients are sinners or the disease is the wrath of God. "In many African countries, only 20 to 25 per cent of pregnant women subject themselves to anti-natal care while in Nigeria, 66 per cent of women have at least a contact with ante-natal clinic. For me, this is unacceptable. There is an urgent need to raise awareness on ante-natal care, HIV status certification for pregnant women to prevent mother-to-child-transmission in cases of positive women. It all boils down to attitudinal change", Sidibe said. Touring the NIRM medical facilities, Sidibe expressed satisfaction with the quality of services offered at the centre, hoping that it would significantly contribute to the goal of eradicating paediatric-HIV in the country. He said: "What they are doing is to restore dignity to people, save lives and prolong the lives of our active people. We need to have access to treatment. I am very impressed by the quality of the services. I ask them how they can really be of help because they have a big centre. They are making a very advance research here, demonstrating that treatment can also be a prevention. I don't want to see this universal hope that we have been creating become a universal nightmare for the people", Sidibe said. In her speech, "Making a case for paediatric HIV", Prof. Kike Osinusi observed that though the Nigerian government had put in place institutions to undertake the treatment of children living with HIV/AIDS, more still needed to be done as "less than 10 per cent of the children are currently under care". She said this was accompanied by the problem of very poor turnout of the kids all over the country and that their number was a sharp contrast with existing statistics. "Enough of keeping behind the scene. HIV is no longer a hopeless disease. It is just like having diabetes, asthma among others. Yet, one can still live a fairly good life. So, we need to find ways of making sure that children get tested", she said. Osinusi, who is also a consultant paediatrician at University College Hospital (UCH) Ibadan, added: "But beyond treatment, what is more important is prevention as Sidibe has been saying. Most important of not making paediatric-HIV happen is by focusing seriously on Prevention of Mother to Child Transmission (PMTCT). If all pregnant women are tested, all positive ones have preventive measures put in proper place, then we can really eradicate 90 per cent of HIV in children in this country. That is what we all need to work on. How then do we get all pregnant women out there to know their status and those that are positive to have the right preventive measure? How do we get them to deliver in the right places for their babies to be followed appropriately, so that they can also have some prevention, which is to be given to the babies? And all those who may be positive can start treatment early. "In other places where PMTCT has been properly done, they have reduced the transmission rate to less than one per cent. That is what we need to do and I know that we can do it. Together, we can eradicate paediatric HIV, even HIV-AIDS from the surface of the earth, but at least, we can start with the children". Osinusi said. Speaking on behalf of children living with HIV/AIDS who are restrained for fear of stigmatisation, 10-year-old Oluebubechukwu Taylor added: "Every child born of positive mother dies for lack of care, support and treatment. My mum, Florence Uke Emechi, knew her status when she was pregnant with me. She was scared that I would be infected... but for the help of the doctors. Today, by the grace of God, I am HIV negative and my mother is alive".

For More Information: http://www.ngrguardiannews.com/news/article30//indexn3_