http://pediatrics.medscape.com/reuters/prof/2001/03/03.13/20010312clin012.html

 

Mother-To-Child HIV Transmission May Not Be Raised With Exclusive Breast-Feeding

WESTPORT, CT (Reuters Health) Mar 12 - Infants who are exclusively breast-fed by HIV-infected mothers for at least 3 months may not be at greater risk of becoming infected than infants of HIV-infected mothers who never breast-feed.

In a study reported in the February 16th issue of AIDS, Dr. Anna Coutsoudis, from the University of Natal, in South Africa, and colleagues assessed the impact of breast-feeding on the rate of HIV transmission to infants of 157 HIV-infected women who never breast-fed, 118 who exclusively breast-fed for 3 months or more, and 276 who breast-fed and used formula.

The authors found that, up to 6 months, the cumulative probability of HIV detection in never and exclusively breast-fed infants was the same (0.194 in both groups), while it was higher (0.261) in mixed-fed infants. By 15 months, exclusive breast-feeders had the lowest risk of all three groups.

Although it is unclear why exclusive breast-feeding may be safer than mixed feeding, the investigators "favor the hypothesis that contaminated fluids and foods introduced in mixed breast-fed babies damage the bowel and facilitate entry into the tissues of HIV in breast milk."

"It is imperative that further studies be undertaken by other groups working at different sites to test the reproducibility of these findings," Dr. Coutsoudis' team concludes.

AIDS 2001;15:379-387.

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