[HIV virus infection and the perinatal period]

The incidence of HIV infection in women is increasing steadily. It has been estimated that between 30,000 and 40,000 French women in child-bearing age are seropositive for HIV. The risk of a seropositive woman transmitting the virus to her child is 40-50 p. 100, and the child will often develop AIDS during the first two years of life. For this reason, seropositive women should be dissuaded to become pregnant or the pregnancy should be interrupted within the normal time limits. Since no effective treatment of AIDS is available at present, prevention is of paramount importance. It consists of detecting seropositive women and above all fighting against intravenous drug addiction and spreading information on the risk of contamination by sexual intercourse.