Treatment of children living with HIV

An estimated 2.5 million children were living with HIV at the end of 2009, 2.3 million of them in sub-Saharan Africa. Most of these children acquire HIV from their HIV-infected mothers during pregnancy, birth or breastfeeding. With efficacious interventions the risk of mother-to-child HIV transmission can be reduced to 2%. However, such interventions are still not widely accessible or available in most resource-limited countries where the burden of HIV is highest, and an estimated 1000 children were newly infected with HIV each day in 2009. The number of children receiving ART increased from about 75 000 in 2005 to 450 000 in 2010, but according WHO/UNAIDS estimates, more than 2 million still needed treatment in 2010.

WHO develops normative guidance for use by policymakers and programme managers and provides support for governments and national stakeholders in developing and implementing HIV prevention, testing, care and treatment services for children.