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The Breastfeeding, Antiretrovirals, and Nutrition Study evaluated the effect of daily consumption of lipid-based nutrient supplements (LNS) by 2121 lactating, HIV-infected mothers on the growth of their exclusively breast-fed, HIV-uninfected infants from 0 to 24 wk. The study had a 2 x 3 factorial design. Malawian mothers with CD4+ ≥250 cells/mm3 hemoglobin ≥70 g/L, and BMI ≥ 17 kg/m2 were randomized within 36 h of delivery to receive either no LNS or 140 g/d of LNS to meet lactation energy and protein needs, and mother-infant pairs were assigned to maternal antiretroviral drugs (ARV), infant ARV, or no ARV. Sex-stratified, longitudinal, random effects models were used to estimate the effect of the 6 study arms on infant weight, length, and BMI. Logistic regression models were used to calculate the odds of growth faltering [decline in weight-for-age Z-score (WAZ) or length-for-age Z-score (LAZ) >0.671 using the control arm as the reference. Although some differences between study arms emerged with increasing infant age in boys, there were no consistent effects of the maternal supplement across the 3 growth outcomes in longitudinal models. At the ages where differences were observed, the effects on weight and BMI were quite small (≤200 g and ≤0.4 kg/m2) and unlikely to be of clinical importance. Overall, 21 and 34% of infants faltered in WAZ and LAZ, respectively. Maternal supplementation did not reduce the odds of infant weight or length faltering from 0 to 24 wk in any arm. These results indicate that blanket supplementation of HIV-infected lactating women may have little impact on infant growth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The Data and Safety Monitoring Board (DSMB) for the Breastfeeding, Antiretrovirals, and Nutrition study, a clinical trial aimed to prevent postnatal HIV transmission, recommended halting randomization to the enhanced standard-of-care (control) arm. The 67 mother–infant pairs on the control arm and less than 21weeks postpartum at the time of the DSMB recommendation were read a script informing them of the DSMB decision and offering them the maternal or infant antiretroviral interventions for the remainder of the 28-week breastfeeding period. This paper describes the BAN study response to the DSMB decision and what the women on the control arm chose, when given a choice to start the maternal or infant antiretroviral interventions. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]