August 3, 2012 | catholicnewsherald.com catholic news heraldI
Catholics support plan that reduces mother-to-child transmission of HIV government, The Global Plan towards WASHINGTON, D.C. — Catholic health the Elimination of New Infections among care workers are offering enthusiastic Children by 2015 and Keeping their support to an ambitious global plan to Mothers Alive takes aim at the 22 hardest stop the transmission of the virus that hit nations. causes AIDS from pregnant mothers to Msgr. Vitillo said an important key to their children. Discussed during the XIX the program’s success is testing women International AIDS Conference July 22-27 early, so that any who are found to carry in Washington, D.C., the plan involves the virus can be put on antiretroviral increasing the availability of the drugs medications. The women then continue that reduce HIV levels in the body so that the medication through birth and breasttransmission does not occur. feeding. In wealthy countries, the availability of such drugs has lowered transmission rates to virtually zero, but that’s not the case in countries most heavily affected by the HIV epidemic. “We really do have hope that we can stop AIDS in children,” said Msgr. Robert J. Vitillo, a special adviser on HIV and AIDS to Caritas Internationalis who sits on the 15-member international steering committee that is supervising the program. In 2010, 390,000 children were CNS | Nancy Phelan Wiechec born with HIV Patient Alpha Samuel holds her 6-month-old son Richard as she listens to a and more than 700 presentation at Our Lady of Apostles Hospital in Akwanga, Nigeria, in this Sept. 2, children died each 2010, file photo. The hospital has witnessed the delivery of babies free from the day, almost all of HIV after treating mothers with anti-retroviral drugs. Richard was born without them in India and HIV. 21 countries of sub-Saharan Africa, While initial programs had discontinued according to the United Nations. women once the child stopped nursing, As a result, the Joint United Nations Msgr. Vitillo said that approach has been Program on HIV/AIDS – known as largely discarded in favor of keeping the UNAIDS – in 2011 announced a plan to woman on antiretroviral drugs indefinitely. prevent transmission of the disease to “We don’t want to save the children and children by assuring that pregnant women then have them lose their mothers,” Msgr. get the testing, treatment and counseling Vitillo said. they need to stop the virus from spreading. — Catholic News Service With funding from the U.N. and the U.S.
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