scholarly journals It ain’t what you do, it’s the way that you do it: The pitfalls of using routine data to measure early infant HIV diagnosis in HIV-exposed infants

PLoS ONE ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (9) ◽  
pp. e0257496
Author(s):  
Elizabeth Chappell ◽  
Claire Thorne ◽  
Intira Jeannie Collins ◽  
Kathy Baisley ◽  
H. Manisha Yapa ◽  
...  

Background Early infant HIV diagnosis (EID) is critical to ensuring timely diagnosis of HIV-exposed infants, and treatment in those found to be infected. However estimates of coverage vary considerably, depending on data sources used. We used 4 methods to estimate coverage among a historical cohort of HIV-exposed infants in rural South Africa, between 2010–2016. Methods We estimated the proportion of infants ever tested (methods 1–3) and tested by 7 weeks of age (1–4) as follows: (1) infants born to women identified as HIV-positive in demographic surveillance were linked to those with ≥1 EID result in routine laboratory surveillance; (2) the number of infants with ≥1 EID result in laboratory surveillance divided by the estimated number of HIV-exposed infants, calculated as total live births multiplied by antenatal HIV seroprevalence; (3) the number of infants with ≥1 EID result in routine laboratory surveillance, divided by the number of HIV-exposed infants as estimated by the district health service; (4) from documentation in infants’ Road-to-Health-booklets. Results The proportion ever tested was 43%, 88% and 138% for methods 1–3, and by 7 weeks of age was 25%, 49%, 86% and 46% for methods 1–4 respectively. Conclusions The four methods, applied to a range of routine data sources, resulted in estimates varying considerably, and the true coverage of EID remains unclear. Our findings highlight the importance of developing unique patient identifiers, improving training of healthcare providers using reporting systems, and ensuring the accuracy of healthcare records, to ensure the best possible health outcomes for HIV-exposed infants.

PLoS ONE ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. e91004 ◽  
Author(s):  
Intira Jeannie Collins ◽  
John Cairns ◽  
Nicole Ngo-Giang-Huong ◽  
Wasna Sirirungsi ◽  
Pranee Leechanachai ◽  
...  

PLoS ONE ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 15 (11) ◽  
pp. e0233341
Author(s):  
Andrew Agabu ◽  
Andrew L. Baughman ◽  
Christa Fischer-Walker ◽  
Michael de Klerk ◽  
Nicholus Mutenda ◽  
...  

Background Namibia introduced the prevention of mother to child HIV transmission (MTCT) program in 2002 and lifelong antiretroviral therapy (ART) for pregnant women (option B-plus) in 2013. We sought to quantify MTCT measured at 4–12 weeks post-delivery. Methods During Aug 2014-Feb 2015, we recruited a nationally representative sample of 1040 pairs of mother and infant aged 4–12 weeks at routine immunizations in 60 public health clinics using two stage sampling approach. Of these, 864 HIV exposed infants had DNA-PCR HIV test results available. We defined an HIV exposed infant if born to an HIV-positive mother with documented status or diagnosed at enrollment using rapid HIV tests. Dried Blood Spots samples from HIV exposed infants were tested for HIV. Interview data and laboratory results were collected on smartphones and uploaded to a central database. We measured MTCT prevalence at 4–12 weeks post-delivery and evaluated associations between infant HIV infection and maternal and infant characteristics including maternal treatment and infant prophylaxis. All statistical analyses accounted for the survey design. Results Based on the 864 HIV exposed infants with test results available, nationally weighted early MTCT measured at 4–12 weeks post-delivery was 1.74% (95% confidence interval (CI): 1.00%-3.01%). Overall, 62% of mothers started ART pre-conception, 33.6% during pregnancy, 1.2% post-delivery and 3.2% never received ART. Mothers who started ART before pregnancy and during pregnancy had low MTCT prevalence, 0.78% (95% CI: 0.31%-1.96%) and 0.98% (95% CI: 0.33%-2.91%), respectively. MTCT rose to 4.13% (95% CI: 0.54%-25.68%) when the mother started ART after delivery and to 11.62% (95% CI: 4.07%-28.96%) when she never received ART. The lowest MTCT of 0.76% (95% CI: 0.36% - 1.61%) was achieved when mother received ART and ARV prophylaxis within 72hrs for infant and highest 22.32% (95%CI: 2.78% -74.25%) when neither mother nor infant received ARVs. After adjusting for mother’s age, maternal ART (Prevalence Ratio (PR) = 0.10, 95% CI: 0.03–0.29) and infant ARV prophylaxis (PR = 0.32, 95% CI: 0.10–0.998) remained strong predictors of HIV transmission. Conclusion As of 2015, Namibia achieved MTCT of 1.74%, measured at 4–12 weeks post-delivery. Women already on ART pre-conception had the lowest prevalence of MTCT emphasizing the importance of early HIV diagnosis and treatment initiation before pregnancy. Studies are needed to measure MTCT and maternal HIV seroconversion during breastfeeding.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chamberline E. Ozigbu ◽  
Salome Erekaha ◽  
Eric E. Chinaeke ◽  
Tongdiyen L. Jasper ◽  
Gift Nwanne ◽  
...  

Abstract Background HIV-exposed infants (HEI) who die before diagnosis or treatment initiation, or who die in spite of being HIV-free constitute missed opportunities for reducing infant mortality. Verbal autopsy (VA) has been successfully applied in the collection of data to determine symptoms and circumstances surrounding death among infants, children and adults among populations that lack vital registration systems. There is little available data on rates and causes of death among HIV-exposed infants (HEI) in Nigeria. We used VA to characterize attributable causes and predictors of mortality among HEI in rural North-Central Nigeria.Methods Pregnant women living with HIV and HEI were enrolled at rural primary healthcare facilities and followed-up for 12 months, post-delivery. A simple 21-item VA instrument was used to collect infant mortality information from mothers, other family members, mentor mothers, and/or healthcare workers. Attributable causes of death were determined by physician coding. Multivariate logistic regression was performed to determine independent predictors of mortality.Results Data from 455 HIV-exposed infected and uninfected fetus/infant-mother pairs were analyzed. All mothers received anti-retroviral therapy. Seventy-five (16.5%) fetuses/infants died during gestation and within 12 months post-delivery. Forty (53.3%) deaths occurred in utero . The 12-month infant mortality risk among HEI in our study was 88.7/1,000. Among the 35 live-born infants, birth asphyxia (6/17, 35.3%) and sepsis (7/18, 38.9%) were the most common causes of death in the neonatal and post-neonatal periods, respectively. Unadjusted estimates showed that a greater proportion of deceased infants had mothers who did not deliver at a health facility (53.3 vs 31.8%, p=0.003), and who were newly HIV-diagnosed during pregnancy (69.3 vs 50.8%, p=0.029). Infants receiving nevirapine prophylaxis within 72 hours were less likely to have died (aOR = 0.40, 95% CI: 0.2-0.9).Conclusions Early HIV diagnosis and treatment among women of child-bearing age, maternal access to facility delivery and timely infant antiretroviral prophylaxis should be programmatically strengthened to reduce HEI mortality. Additionally, robust monitoring and evaluation systems are needed to track and record deaths among HEI.


2021 ◽  
Vol 19 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rabiu Ibrahim Jalo ◽  
Taiwo Amole ◽  
Deepa Dongarwar ◽  
Hadiza Abdullahi ◽  
Fatima I. Tsiga-Ahmed ◽  
...  

Background: In line with global standards and progress made in Prevention of Mother-to-Child Transmission (PMTCT), an assessment of the outcome of Early Infant Diagnosis in northern Nigeria is necessary to evaluate progress towards a zero Human immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) infection rate among children. Objectives: This study assessed the infection rate and risk factors for mother-to-child HIV transmission among HIV-exposed children in Kano, northwest Nigeria. Method: Using a retrospective cohort design, pregnant HIV-positive women and their exposed infants were recruited over a period of six years (2010 to 2016). Participants were enrolled during pregnancy or at delivery from the PMTCT clinic of a tertiary health facility in Kano, Nigeria. The main observations of the study were Early infant diagnosis positivity for HIV at 6 weeks and the risk factors for positivity. Results: Of the 1,514 infants studied, Early Infant Diagnosis was positive for HIV among 13 infants (0.86%). Infants whose mothers did not have antiretroviral therapy (adjusted Prevalence Ratio aPR = 2.58, 95%CI [1.85- 3.57]); who had mixed feeding (aPR = 12.06, 95%CI [9.86- 14.70]) and those not on antiretroviral prophylaxis (aPR = 20.39, 95%CI [16.04- 25.71]) were more likely to be infected with HIV. HIV-exposed infants on nevirapine and zidovudine prophylaxis accounted for 95% and 74%, respectively, and were less likely to be infected with HIV. Conclusion: HIV infection rate remains high among HIV-exposed infants whose mothers did not receive PMTCT services. Scaling up proven interventions of early commencement of antiretroviral treatment for mothers, adherence to antiretroviral prophylaxis and avoidance of mixed feeding among HIV-exposed infants would protect future generations from HIV infection.


2017 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 83-89 ◽  
Author(s):  
N. A. Phiri ◽  
H-Y Lee ◽  
L. Chilenga ◽  
C. Mtika ◽  
F. Sinyiza ◽  
...  

2020 ◽  
Vol 50 (2) ◽  
pp. 154-156
Author(s):  
Lawrence K Gitonga ◽  
Waqo G Boru ◽  
Lilly Muthoni ◽  
Jacob Odhiambo ◽  
James Ransom

Homa Bay County in south-western Kenya has a low uptake of antenatal care services and the highest prevalence of HIV in the country. We present the findings of a retrospective review of HIV-exposed infants (HEI) who sought early infant diagnosis services in the county throughout 2015. HEI who were breastfed >6 months, had replacement feeding and did not receive prophylaxis were 2–6 times more likely to be HIV-positive.


2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (3) ◽  
pp. 320-329
Author(s):  
Anays Murillo ◽  
Mary Bachman DeSilva ◽  
Lora L. Sabin ◽  
Nafisa Halim ◽  
Harriet Chemusto ◽  
...  

Background: Uganda has successfully reduced pediatric HIV infections through prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV (PMTCT) programs, yet little is known about adherence to infant-specific components of interventions. We hypothesized that infants born to mothers receiving the WiseMama (WM) electronic drug monitoring (EDM)-based adherence intervention would have increased uptake of six-week post-natal nevirapine (NVP) infant prophylaxis and better adherence to six-week early infant diagnosis (EID) HIV testing. Methods: At two sites in Uganda, the Wise Infant Study (WIN) prospectively followed an infant cohort. Infants were born to women enrolled in an RCT testing the effect of real-time reminders delivered via EDM on maternal adherence to antiretroviral therapy. We assessed intrapartum and discharge receipt of NVP prophylaxis using pharmacy and infant HIV DNA testing laboratory data. Results: Of 121 women eligible for WIN, 97 (80%) consented and enrolled; 46 had been randomized to control and 51 to intervention. There were no differences in receipt of a six-week NVP supply (control 87%, intervention 82%, p = 0.53). Receipt of any NVP prophylaxis did not vary by delivery location (p = 0.35), and although 12% of infants were delivered at non-study health facilities, they were not less likely to receive NVP at discharge (p = 0.37). Among infants with a completed HIV test, there was no difference in mean time to first test (control 52 days (SD 18), intervention 51 days (SD 15), p = 0.86). Only one infant, in the control group, tested positive for HIV. Conclusion and Global Health Implications: We found no significant differences in adherence to infant PMTCT practices between intervention and control infants with relatively high rates of NVP receipt albeit with suboptimal adherence to six-week EID testing. Further work is needed to ensure improved access, uptake, and follow-up of HIV-exposed infants in the Option B+ era. Key words: • Prevention of maternal to child transmission of HIV • HIV • Nevirapine • Antiretroviral therapy prophylaxis • Early infant diagnosis • HIV-exposed infants   Copyright © 2020 Murillo et al. Published by Global Health and Education Projects, Inc. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY 4.0) which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work, first published in this journal, is properly cited.


2017 ◽  
Vol 2017 ◽  
pp. 1-8 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michelle M. Gill ◽  
Heather J. Hoffman ◽  
Majoalane Mokone ◽  
Vincent J. Tukei ◽  
Matsepeli Nchephe ◽  
...  

Very early infant diagnosis (VEID) (testing within two weeks of life), combined with rapid treatment initiation, could reduce early infant mortality. Our study evaluated turnaround time (TAT) to receipt of infants’ HIV test results and ART initiation if HIV-infected, with and without birth testing availability. Data from facility records and national databases were collected for 12 facilities offering VEID, as part of an observational prospective cohort study, and 10 noncohort facilities. HIV-exposed infants born in January–June 2016 and any cohort infant diagnosed as HIV-infected at birth or six weeks were included. The median TAT from blood draw to caregiver result receipt was 76.5 days at birth and 63 and 70 days at six weeks at cohort and noncohort facilities, respectively. HIV-exposed infants tested at birth were approximately one month younger when their caregivers received results versus those tested at six weeks. Infants diagnosed at birth initiated ART about two months earlier (median 6.4 weeks old) than those identified at six weeks (median 14.8 weeks). However, the long TAT for testing at both birth and six weeks illustrates the prolonged process for specimen transport and result return that could compromise the effectiveness of adding VEID to existing overburdened EID systems.


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