Five-year trends in epidemiology and prevention of mother-to-child HIV transmission, St. Petersburg, Russia: results from perinatal HIV surveillance.
BACKGROUND
The HIV epidemic in Russia has increasingly involved reproductive-aged women, which may increase perinatal HIV transmission.


METHODS
Standard HIV case-reporting and enhanced perinatal HIV surveillance systems were used for prospective assessment of HIV-infected women giving birth in St. Petersburg, Russia, during 2004-2008. Trends in social, perinatal, and clinical factors influencing mother-to-child HIV transmission stratified by history of injection drug use, and rates of perinatal HIV transmission were assessed using two-sided χ2 or Cochran-Armitage tests.


RESULTS
Among HIV-infected women who gave birth, the proportion of women who self-reported ever using injection drugs (IDUs) decreased from 62% in 2004 to 41% in 2008 (P<0.0001). Programmatic improvements led to increased uptake of the following clinical services from 2004 to 2008 (all P<0.01): initiation of antiretroviral prophylaxis at ≤28 weeks gestation (IDUs 44%-54%, non-IDUs 45%-72%), monitoring of immunologic (IDUs 48%-64%, non-IDUs 58%-80%) and virologic status (IDUs 8%-58%, non-IDUs 10%-75%), dual/triple antiretroviral prophylaxis (IDUs 9%-44%, non-IDUs 14%-59%). After initial increase from 5.3% (95% confidence interval [CI] 3.5%-7.8%) in 2004 to 8.5% (CI 6.1%-11.7%) in 2005 (P<0.05), perinatal HIV transmission decreased to 5.3% (CI 3.4%-8.3%) in 2006, and 3.2% (CI 1.7%-5.8%) in 2007 (P for trend<0.05). However, the proportion of women without prenatal care and without HIV testing before labor and delivery remained unchanged.


CONCLUSIONS
Reduced proportion of IDUs and improved clinical services among HIV-infected women giving birth were accompanied by decreased perinatal HIV transmission, which can be further reduced by increasing outreach and HIV testing of women before and during pregnancy.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 4770 Buford Highway NE, MS K-34, Atlanta, Georgia 30341, USA. DKissin@cdc.gov
Dmitry M
DM
Kissin
Michele G
MG
Mandel
Natalia
N
Akatova
Nikolay A
NA
Belyakov
Aza G
AG
Rakhmanova
Evgeny E
EE
Voronin
Galina V
GV
Volkova
Alexey A
AA
Yakovlev
Denise J
DJ
Jamieson
Charles
C
Vitek
Joanna
J
Robinson
William C
WC
Miller
Susan
S
Hillis
D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D015658:HIV Infections / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000635:transmission*; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D018445:Infectious Disease Transmission, Vertical / Q000517:prevention & control / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D015233:Models, Statistical; D011247:Pregnancy; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012307:Risk Factors; D012426:Russia / Q000453:epidemiology