HAART effective for treating HIV-infected children living in DRC

This observational cohort study, by Andrew Edmonds and colleagues, reports that treatment with highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART) markedly improves the survival of HIV-infected children in Kinshasa, DRC, a resource-deprived setting. The findings presented suggest that HAART is as effective for improving the survival of HIV-infected children in a severely resource-deprived country (still recovering from civil war) as in more resource-privileged settings. Most observational studies on the effects of antiretroviral treatment on child survival have been undertaken in high income countries, such as Italy and the United States. But most children with HIV live in low resource areas where multiple factors, such as delayed presentation to care and a higher incidence of co-occurring conditions, might adversely affect treatment outcomes, so this study addresses a specific need for information on the effects of HAART on children with HIV living in low-income countries.

Source: Public Library of Science