Rapid testing at labor and delivery to prevent mother-to-child HIV transmission in developing settings: issues and...

Worldwide, approximately 2.5 million children (95% CI: 2.2-2.6) are living with HIV infection. In 2007 alone, approximately 420,000 children (95%CI: 350,000-540,000) were newly infected with HIV - a vast majority of these infections were acquired through maternal-fetal transmission. Many of these infections could have been reduced by timely diagnosis and the delivery of interventions aimed at preventing mother-to-child HIV transmission. This perspective examines the attitudes preventing women from accessing HIV testing early on during pregnancy and the issues and challenges that remain in the institutionalization of interventions to prevent mother-to-child HIV transmission at labor and delivery. Socio-cultural and economic factors prevent women from accessing testing at an opportune time during pregnancy. In addition, a lack of adequate infrastructure often prevents timely delivery of interventions to those who access testing at the last minute (i.e., during labor and delivery). In the wake of a pediatric HIV epidemic and the need for lifelong provision of antiretroviral therapy to infected children, a simple strategy for provision of round-the-clock rapid testing and counseling services in the labor rooms may be cost saving to the healthcare systems worldwide.