Management of HIV-exposed and HIV-infected children

JL Robinson; Canadian Paediatric Society, Infectious Diseases and Immunization Committee

Paediatr Child Health 2010;15(6):379

Parent handout: Testing for HIV during pregnancy

Index of position statements from the Infectious Diseases and Immunization Committee

The management of HIV-exposed and HIV-infected children has been improved by the introduction of new testing methods and of new antiretroviral agents. Whenever practical, such children should be cared for in consultation with paediatric infectious disease physicians with HIV expertise. Physicians caring for these children should refer to the United States National Institutes of Health guidelines (www.aidsinfo.nih.gov/Guidelines/), which are continuously updated. Physicians should keep in mind that the availability date of new antiretroviral agents and of paediatric formulations of antiretroviral agents differs in Canada versus the United States, with variation in which country first licenses these products. Issues on testing for HIV infection in pregnancy, benefit of early detection and prevalence of disease can be found in a previous Canadian Paediatric Society statement titled “Testing for HIV infection in pregnancy” (1).

This document replaces the previous Canadian Paediatric Society statement published in 2004.

REFERENCE

1. Robinson JL; Canadian Paediatric Society, Infectious Diseases and Immunization Committee. Testing for HIV infection in pregnancy. Paediatr Child Health 2008;13:221-4.

INFECTIOUS DISEASES AND IMMUNIZATION COMMITTEE
Members: Drs Robert Bortolussi, IWK Health Centre, Halifax, Nova Scotia (Chair); Jane Finlay, Richmond, British Columbia; Jane C McDonald, The Montreal Children’s Hospital, Montreal, Quebec; Heather Onyett, Kingston General Hospital, Kingston, Ontario; Joan L Robinson, Edmonton, Alberta; Élisabeth Rousseau-Harsany, Sainte-Justine University Hospital Center, Montreal, Quebec (Board Representative)
Liaisons: Drs Upton D Allen, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Ontario (Canadian Pediatric AIDS Research Group); Charles PS Hui, Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario, Ottawa, Ontario (CPS Liaison to Health Canada, Committee to Advise on Tropical Medicine and Travel); Nicole Le Saux, Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario, Ottawa, Ontario (Immunization Program, ACTive); Larry Pickering, Elk Grove, Illinois, USA (American Academy of Pediatrics); Marina I Salvadori, Children’s Hospital of Western Ontario, London, Ontario (CPS Liaison to Health Canada, National Advisory Committee on Immunization)
Consultants: Drs James Kellner, Calgary, Alberta; Noni E MacDonald, IWK Health Centre, Halifax, Nova Scotia; Dorothy L Moore, The Montreal Children’s Hospital, Montreal, Quebec
Principal author: Dr Joan L Robinson, Edmonton, Alberta

Posted: August 2010