MUSCAT, Jul 14 (Times of Oman): Every parent’s desire is to be blessed with a healthy child but for those infected with HIV/Aids it’s perhaps a distant dream. HIV transmission from mother to child during pregnancy, which is also known as pre-natal transmission, occurs when the infected women is not tested early enough during pregnancy or have not taken preventive measures.

According to the Ministry of Health, there is a one out of every three cases where children of infected mothers are born with HIV and most of them succumb to the disease by the time they turn three. Hence, it becomes essential for women infected with HIV to seek proper advice and required medical assistance before going ahead with child birth.

In the Sultanate there are adequate medical facilities for couples to undergo the necessary tests that can determine whether it’s safe to go ahead with the pregnancy or not.

HIV tests

Highlighting on this issue Dr Mohammed Ridha Al Lawati, chief HIV physician in Oman, recently emphasised on the importance of going for HIV tests for all, especially the youth who often get involved in careless and unsafe activities.

“If anyone is involved in such behaviour or is into drugs they must go for HIV tests. It’s sad that today’s youth get overconfident and live in denial. They think they can never get infected, which is sadly untrue,” added Dr Ridha.

Discussing about the dangers of blood donation in such cases Dr Ridha says that sometimes when the blood being tested, the virus might not be detectable but in fact the virus could be present.

“Those who have even a slightest suspicion must not go for blood donation under any circumstance. Though such cases do not occur in Oman as the blood, before any transfusion, gets thoroughly screened by medical specialists,” informed Dr Ridha.

While advising the youth of Oman to stay away from irresponsible act, Dr Ridha assured that Oman is way ahead than many countries in terms of precaution and safety when it comes to HIV.

“In case of a pregnant mother who is infected with the virus, we give appropriate treatment to the mother so that she does not transfer the virus to her child.

“We give her a medication called Antiretroviral, which is a combination of three drugs. A series of tests are done for the detection of the virus as it’s vital to know whether the virus is a new or an old one,” he said.

The treatment for the infected patients starts with clinical screening and laboratory screening. If the virus is below detection level then the risk of transferring the virus to the baby becomes lower.

After the childbirth the baby is given medication for six weeks, and breast feeding is prohibited. All these steps are taken to prevent the virus from getting passed on from the mother to the child, the doctor stressed.
Currently there are 1,100 registered cases of HIV infected persons. “Around 100 new cases are reported every year, and 27 per cent of them are women,” he added.
Talking about the perils of the disease the doctor said that living with HIV is like living with diabetes. “When a person has diabetes, he takes his medication and goes along with his life. HIV is the same. You can take your medication and carry on with your life. You can only do this if you come forward and do the necessary tests. People should know that privacy in health institutions is strictly maintained. We also seek the help of counsellors who explain to the patients all issues related to the virus. We encourage them to inform someone from their family whom they are close to,” informed Dr Ridha.

“One cannot turn a blind eye to this deadly virus. In fact, we should face it. If a person feels uncomfortable in conducting tests in government institutions then they can even go to the private health care centres,” he added.
“In Oman the number of children infected with the virus is considerably very less, yet we aim to attain total success,” he said.

“I never discourage HIV infected women from getting pregnant but at the same time I also advise them to take ample precautions and go for all the necessary tests,” he informed.

Yasmin Ahmed Jaafar, director of family and community health and in-charge of all programmes related to women, children and adolescents, said that the Ministry of Health takes steadfast efforts to prevent the transmission of HIV virus from an infected mother to her baby.

“That is why MoH has taken the step of making HIV screening available through a constructed and well-developed programme,” Yasmin pointed out.
Yasmin noted that they never came across any woman who refused to take the tests.

“Nobody has objected so far to take these tests. In fact, women do not have the fear to go for these tests. Confidentiality is maintained, not only in cases of HIV but also in other cases,” she said.

“The majority of infected women in Oman are young and have a whole life ahead of them,” noted Yasmin. “It is important that these infected women take all necessary measures to protect their children, take the treatment and attend sessions with their doctors. It is possible to keep the virus under control only if they follow the treatment. Patients go through denial in the initial stage and they must be given enough support,” she said.

Talking about the stigma that the patients might face she said that in Oman there has been a great transformation and people have started to understand the disease and not go by the myths associated with it.

Taqwa Al Lawati, a member of Y-Peer Group and a representative of the National Aids Programme in Oman, informed that people living with HIV/Aids virus have formed a small community among themselves so that they can meet every two weeks and talk about their problems. Last year, Times of Oman shared a story of a 25-year-old girl who got infected with HIV/Aids through her mother. Her mother died, but left her child with a tough life ahead.

Taqwa informed Times that this young girl has got married to a person living with HIV/Aids, and is currently pregnant.

The girl is taking all necessary medication at the moment to prevent the transmission of the virus to her baby.

As reported in the Guidelines for the Management of HIV Infection and Aids, published by National HIV/Aids/STI Control and Prevention Programme, MoH (2004 edition), the first HIV case in Oman was reported in 1984; subsequently the numbers steadily increased till 1994. However, from 1995 to 1998 there was a decline in the cases. From 1999 to 2003 the situation was stationery i.e. on an average about 80 cases per year were reported. This can be attributed to strong blood safety policies, information, education and communication programme activities, as important tools for the prevention of HIV as well as STI prevention programme that emphasises promptly identifying persons with STIs, initiating appropriate therapy and ensuring completion of treatment.

By the end of 2003, the male to female ratio was 2.5:1 and 20-44 years was the main age group affected with HIV infection (72.2 per cent).