Screening and management of HIV infection in pregnant women in Dakar.

Objectives: To assess the feasibility and results of the implementation of systematic HIV screening of pregnant women and antiretroviral (ARV) treatment for those found to be HIV-positive and their newborns at the IHS Gynecology-Obstetrics Department in Dakar, Senegal.
Patients and Methods: This cross-sectional prospective study took place in 2014-1016 and examined the results of screening pregnant women for HIV during their prenatal consultations and treating those found to be HIV-positive and their infants with ARV.
Results: HIV screening was routinely proposed to the 1616 pregnant women attending antenatal clinics, and 93.9 % accepted. The test was positive for 5 of these women, for an HIV prevalence of 0.3 % of pregnant women. In addition, another 23 HIV-positive pregnant women were referred to the IHS for their prenatal care and delivery, for a total of 28 women with HIV. Their mean age was 30 years, their mean parity 1.6, and all had HIV-1. Triple therapy was initiated for all HIV-positive pregnant women, in line with the WHO guidelines' "B + option", currently adopted by Senegal. During follow-up, only 35.7 % of the women had access to a viral load assay. The outcome of pregnancy was favorable in 91.6 % of cases; 72.2% of the women had vaginal deliveries. All live-born infants were given antiretroviral prophylaxis at birth. The mode of breastfeeding used was mainly exclusive protected breastfeeding (72.2 %). During postnatal follow-up, 2 of the 17 live-born infants were lost to follow-up, and 15 had PCR testing for HIV, which was positive in only 1 case, for a transmission rate of 6.6 %.
Conclusion: The systematic offer and performance of HIV testing in all pregnant women is feasible and acceptable. Good organization of care can provide ARV treatment for all HIV-positive pregnant women and their newborns. The accessibility of viral load testing and of PCR screening for neonates still requires improvement.