Women with HIV infection benefited from free access to formula project pioneer.

-However, the need to prevent the nursing mother, responsible for 7-15% of cases of infection from mothers to children especially among women in unfavourable socio-economic situations persists

-five Spanish hospitals have launched the pilot project courtesy, an initiative of Dr. López Cortésthe clinic diseases infectious of the Hospital Universitario Virgen del Rocío in Sevilla, which has the support of GeSIDA unit and the collaboration of Abbott Laboratories S.A

-initiative aims to give support to mothers infected with HIV and their families and help prevent this transmission route through the free delivery of milk feeding for the first six months life of the newborn

Madrid, March 2012.- five Spanish hospitals have embarked on the project courtesy, a pilot program coordinated by Dr. López Cortés of the unity clinic of infectious diseases, Microbología and medicine preventive of the Hospital Universitario Virgen del Rocío in Sevilla carried out in five Spanish hospitals, through which had been provided formula to women infected by HIV during the first six months of life of the newborn. In this pilot project they participated the hospitals University Virgen del Rocío in Seville, La Fe de Valencia, Virgin of the Arrixaca in Murcia, San Cecilio de Granada and the Hospital de Jerez.

Services for infectious diseases and Pediatrics of each hospital doctors have been responsible for identify patients requiring this formula for their newborn newborns, and pharmacists in hospital pharmacy services have been responsible for their delivery to patients. COURTESY draft was introduced in the III Congress national GeSIDA held in Seville.

After the success of the pilot, the initiative will carry out at the national level with a dual purpose: to support those mothers infected with HIV and their families who, for their socio-economic conditions, have difficulties accessing this type of food for the newborn infants, and completely avoid the risk of transmission of HIV through breastfeeding.

The project has the support of GeSIDA (study group, AIDS) that considers it very important that HIV mothers without resources in our country have access to infant formula.

Transmission of mother son represents between 15 and 30% of cases of HIV infection in the world, today still breast feeding one of the main routes of vertical transmission in countries without economic resources. The transmission during pregnancy and childbirth have declined considerably with the administration of therapy antiretroviral and prophylaxis measures, because there are treatments that have shown their efficacy and safety in women with HIV pregnant. However, the vertical transmission of HIV during lactation occurs in 7 to 15 per cent of newborn uninfected infants.

This risk can be prevented by avoiding breastfeeding. Not all children infected with HIV mothers fed with breast milk acquired HIV infection, this depends on many factors such as the viral load of the mother, cracks in the nipple, mastitis and immaturity of the immune system of the newborn, among others. However, the recommendation of artificial lactation in all cases, along with the use of antiretroviral therapy and ECS in indicated cases, has managed to reduce the rate of vertical transmission of HIV to less than 1% in developed countries.