New research suggests that life-long antiretroviral therapy promises to eradicate mother-to-child transmission of HIV

More than eight years ago, the WHO issued recommendations known as "Option B-plus" to make HIV prevention and treatment simpler and more effective among women during and after pregnancy in low- and middle-income countries.
aspect of the programme's B-plus programme is to ensure that pregnant women infected with HIV begin lifelong antiviral therapy, or antiretroviral therapy (ART), as early as possible during pregnancy.
the prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV has made an important breakthrough.
life-long antiviral drug interventions can also be effective in preventing HIV progressing to later and earlier deaths, as well as further infections in partners and future children.
, however, so far there has been little research on how this treatment affects the long-term viral levels of HIV-positive pregnant women in low- and middle-income countries with a heavy HIV burden.
now, in this new study, researchers from the Karolinska Institute, the Mosibilly University of Health and United Sciences, and the Tanzanian Ministry of Health Management and Development have studied the effectiveness of programme B-plus interventions in Tanzania over time.
2019 data from UNAIDS, 4.8 per cent of Tanzania's 15- to 49-year-old population (1.7 million in total) are infected with HIV.
the study, conducted in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania's largest city, included data on 10,161 HIV-infected pregnant women who had begun antiviral treatment under the program B-plus to prevent the virus from spreading to their unborn babies.
data were collected, 5.9 per cent of pregnant women who started antenatal care in Dar es Salaam were HIV-positive.
about one-third of the study participants had advanced HIV.
the researchers measured HIV levels in the blood of these pregnant women to measure the effectiveness of antiviral therapy over time.
data were collected between 2014 and 2016 and monitored for up to four years.
the results showed that up to 90 percent of the women who participated in the study had their HIV levels suppressed for up to four years after they started receiving program B-plus care.
other words, the WHO's goal of eliminating mother-to-child transmission of HIV seems likely to be achieved.
"Our study confirms the long-lasting health benefits of life-long antiretroviral therapy for women who receive program B-plus during pregnancy, and therefore for their babies," said Goodluck Lyatuu, lead author of the paper and a doctoral student in the Department of Public Health at the Karolinska Institute.
," he continued, "these findings point to other important challenges when it comes to obtaining the full long-term benefits of program B-plus."
, for example, to focus on groups of women, such as young mothers, mothers who start prenatal care in the late stages of pregnancy, and mothers with advanced HIV.
" Reference: 1.Goodluck W Lyatuu et al. Long-term virological outcomes in women who started option B+ care during pregnancy for prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania: a cohort study. Lancet HIV, 2021, doi:10.1016/S2352-3018(20)30308-8. 2.New study gives hope of eliminating mother-to-baby transmission of HIV