Checking health of a HIV patient who is using ARV drugs (Source: VNA)Hanoi (VNA) – Early HIV testing is essential for pregnant women tominimise the risk to transmit the virus from mother to child.
This is the main message of the action month to preventmother-to-child HIV transmission in June 2018.
The purpose of the action month is to promote theinvolvement of the entire political system and people in reducing the rate ofmother-to-child HIV transmission to below 2 percent by 2020.
It also aims to raise the awareness of people from all walksof life, especially pregnant women and spouses of people with HIV, of the benefitsof early HIV testing.
Activities held during the month also look to reducediscriminations against HIV-infected pregnant women and their children.
Throughout the month, services to prevent mother-to-childHIV transmission will be stepped up, including expanding HIV testing forpregnant women, and providing anti-retroviral drugs for HIV-infected women.
The Ministry of Health’s Maternal and Child Health Department reportedthat the rate of HIV infection among the country’s two million pregnant womenevery year is 0.25 percent.
Pregnant women living in districts reported to be HIVhotbeds in 32 provinces and cities will be tested for HIV. All those who areconfirmed HIV positive will be given long-term anti-retroviral (ARV) treatment.
Vietnam is aiming to keep the rate of new HIV/AIDSinfections below 0.3 percent, while reducing the impact of HIV/AIDS onsocio-economic development.
Vietnam saw decreases in the number of new HIV infections, people livingwith AIDS and AIDS-related fatalities for the tenth consecutive year in 2017,according to the Ministry of Health.
More than 209,400 people areliving with HIV nationwide, including more than 90,100 cases of HIV developinginto full-blown AIDS, and about 94,600 people have died of HIV/AIDS so far. Thecountry’s HIV/AIDS prevalence among the population remains below 0.3 percent.
Last year, the country recorded about9,800 people newly infected with HIV and 1,800 deaths due to HIV, down 1.1percent and 15 percent, respectively, from 2016. The number of peoplecontracting AIDS also declined by 39 percent.-VNA
VNA
