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MTCT HIV-1 Transmission Update: Transmission Routes and Mechanisms

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Encyclopedia of AIDS

Definition

HIV can be transmitted from a mother to her child (mother-to-child transmission or MTCT) during pregnancy (in utero), labor/delivery (intrapartum), or via breastfeeding (postpartum). Mother-to-child transmission or vertical transmission of HIV occurs in 25–40 % of pregnancies without intervention. With medical interventions including antiretroviral prophylaxis to both the mother and the infant, cesarean section and, breastfeeding avoidance, MTCT has been decreased to less than 2 % in resource-rich settings, yet MTCT is still above 10 % in resource-poor settings due to limited access to effective interventions.

Introduction

Vertical transmission, or mother-to-child transmission (MTCT) of HIV-1, may occur during pregnancy (in utero), during labor/delivery (intrapartum), or throughout the breastfeeding period (postpartum). Since the first report of vertical transmission of HIV in 1982, dramatic improvements in prevention of MTCT have been made. Despite these successes, an...

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Center for Global Health and Development, Boston University of Public Health, 801 Massachusetts Avenue, 3rd floor, Boston, MA, 02118, USA

    Katherine Semrau

  2. Division of Infectious Disease, The Saban Research Institute, Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, 90027, USA

    Grace M. Aldrovandi

Authors
  1. Katherine Semrau
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  2. Grace M. Aldrovandi
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Katherine Semrau .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Dept. Cell & Molecular Biology, Northwestern University, Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, Illinois, USA

    Thomas J. Hope

  2. Office of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies, University of Miami, Miller School of Medicine, Miami, Florida, USA

    Mario Stevenson

  3. University of California, San Diego Dept. Pathology, La Jolla, California, USA

    Douglas Richman

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© 2014 Springer Science+Business Media New York

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Semrau, K., Aldrovandi, G.M. (2014). MTCT HIV-1 Transmission Update: Transmission Routes and Mechanisms. In: Hope, T., Stevenson, M., Richman, D. (eds) Encyclopedia of AIDS. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-9610-6_132-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4614-9610-6_132-1

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, New York, NY

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4614-9610-6

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