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IntroductionHIV prevention during pregnancy and lactation is critical for both maternal and child health. Pregnancy provides a critical opportunity for clinicians to elicit women's vulnerabilities to HIV and offer HIV testing, treatment and referral and/or comprehensive HIV prevention options for the current pregnancy, the postpartum period and safer conception options for future pregnancies. In this commentary, we review the safety of oral pre-exposure prophylaxis with tenofovir/emtricitabine in pregnant and lactating women and suggest opportunities to identify pregnant and postpartum women at substantial risk of HIV. We then describe a clinical approach to caring for women who both choose and decline pre-exposure prophylaxis during pregnancy and postpartum, highlighting areas for future research.DiscussionEvidence suggests that pre-exposure prophylaxis with tenofovir/emtricitabine is safe in pregnancy and lactation. Identifying women vulnerable to HIV and eligible for pre-exposure prophylaxis is challenging in light of the myriad of individual, community, and structural forces impacting HIV acquisition. Validated risk calculators exist for specific populations but have not been used to screen and offer HIV prevention methods. Partner testing and engagement of men living with HIV are additional means of reaching at-risk women. However, women's vulnerabilities to HIV change over time. Combining screening for HIV vulnerability with HIV and/or STI testing at standard intervals during pregnancy is a practical way to prompt providers to incorporate HIV screening and prevention counselling. We suggest using shared decision-making to offer women pre-exposure prophylaxis as one of multiple HIV prevention strategies during pregnancy and postpartum, facilitating open conversations about HIV vulnerabilities, preferences about HIV prevention strategies, and choosing a method that best meets the needs of each woman.ConclusionGrowing evidence suggests that pre-exposure prophylaxis with tenofovir/emtricitabine during pregnancy and lactation is safe and effective. Shared decision-making provides one approach to identify at-risk women and offers pre-exposure prophylaxis but requires implementation research in diverse clinical settings. Including pregnant and breastfeeding women in future HIV prevention research is critical for the creation of evidence-driven public health policies and clinical guidelines.

Eliminating perinatal transmission of HIV and improving the care of childbearing women living with HIV in the United States require public health and clinical leadership. The Comprehensive Care Workgroup of the Elimination of Perinatal HIV Transmission Stakeholders Group, sponsored by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, developed a concept of perinatal HIV service coordination (PHSC) and identified 6 core functions through (1) semistructured exploratory interviews with contacts in 11 state or city health departments from April 2011 through February 2012, (2) literature review and summary of data on gaps in services and outcomes, and (3) group meetings from August 2010 through June 2017. We discuss leadership strategies for implementing the core functions of PHSC: strategic planning, access to services, real-time case finding, care coordination, comprehensive care, and data and case reviews. PHSC provides a systematic approach to optimize services and close gaps in perinatal HIV prevention and the HIV care continuum for childbearing women that can be individualized for jurisdictions with varying needs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 2007, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and Pfizer Inc recommended immediate discontinuation of nelfinavir (NFV) during pregnancy due to contamination with a potential teratogen. A few weeks after the announcement, we surveyed antenatal HIV care providers to determine how widely the warning was disseminated. Overall, 69 of 121 (57.0%) providers knew to discontinue NFV. Callers with more than 50 HIV-infected patients were 2.54 times as likely to be aware as callers with 1-3 HIV-infected patients (P < .01). Only 12 (33.3%) obstetricians were aware, compared to 21 (80.8%) infectious diseases specialists (P < .001). The FDA/Pfizer Inc recommendation to avoid nelfinavir mesylate (NFV) in pregnancy appears to have successfully reached HIV experts. However, not all pregnant women have access to experts and may receive most of their care from providers without extensive HIV experience. More effective dissemination of critical HIV-related information to all antenatal care providers, including general obstetricians, family physicians, and midwives, may be needed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the use of assisted reproductive technologies by HIV-affected couples desiring children. Topics include risk of HIV transmission for achieving pregnancy through condomless sex, sustained use of antiretroviral therapy (ART) for achieving suppressed viral load in partners living with HIV, and no cases of penile–vaginal transmission in the setting of an undetectable viral load.

Background: Pregnancy may increase a woman's susceptibility to HIV. Maternal HIV acquisition during pregnancy and lactation is associated with increased perinatal and lactational HIV transmission. There are no published reports of preexposure prophylaxis use after the first trimester of pregnancy or during lactation.Objective: The purpose of this study was to report the use of preexposure prophylaxis and to identify gaps in HIV prevention services for women who were at substantial risk of HIV preconception and during pregnancy and lactation at 2 United States medical centers.Study Design: Chart review was performed on women who were identified as "at significant risk" for HIV acquisition preconception (women desiring pregnancy) and during pregnancy and lactation at 2 medical centers in San Francisco and New York from 2010-2015. Women were referred to specialty clinics for women who were living with or were at substantial risk of HIV.Results: Twenty-seven women who were identified had a median age of 27 years. One-half of the women had unstable housing, 22% of the women had ongoing intimate partner violence, and 22% of the women had active substance use. Twenty-six women had a male partner living with HIV, and 1 woman had a male partner who had sex with men. Of the partners who were living with HIV, 73% (19/26) were receiving antiretroviral therapy, and 42% (11/26) had documented viral suppression. Thirty-nine percent (10/26) of partners had known detectable virus, and 19% (5/26) had unknown viral loads. Women were identified by clinicians, health educators, and health departments. Approximately one-third of the women were identified preconception (8/27); the majority of the women were identified during pregnancy (18/27) with a median gestational age of 20 weeks (interquartile range, 11-23), and 1 woman was identified in the postpartum period. None of the pregnant referrals had received safer conception counseling to reduce HIV transmission. Twenty-six percent of all women (7/27) were eligible for postexposure prophylaxis at referral, of whom 57% (4/7) were offered postexposure prophylaxis. In 30% (8/27), the last HIV exposure was not assessed and postexposure prophylaxis was not offered. The median time from identification as "at substantial risk" to consultation was 30 days (interquartile range, 2-62). Two women were lost to follow up before consultation. One woman who was identified as "at significant risk" was not referred because of multiple pregnancy complications. She remained in obstetrics care and was HIV-negative at delivery but was lost to follow up until 10 months after delivery when she was diagnosed with HIV. No other seroconversions were identified. Of referrals who presented and were offered preexposure prophylaxis, 67% women (16/24) chose to take it, which was relatively consistent whether the women were preconception (5/8), pregnant (10/15), or after delivery (1/1). Median length of time on preexposure prophylaxis was 30 weeks (interquartile range, 20-53). One-half of women (10/20) who were in care at delivery did not attend a postpartum visit.Conclusion: Women at 2 United States centers frequently chose to use preexposure prophylaxis for HIV prevention when it was offered preconception and during pregnancy and lactation. Further research and education are needed to close critical gaps in screening for women who are at risk of HIV for pre- and postexposure prophylaxis eligibility and gaps in care linkage before and during pregnancy and lactation. Postpartum women are particularly vulnerable to loss-to-follow-up and miss opportunities for safe and effective HIV prevention. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study evaluates the consultation needs of clinicians who provide perinatal human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) care in the United States. The Perinatal Hotline (1-888-448-8765) is a telephone consultation service for providers who treat HIV-infected pregnant women and their infants. Hotline calls were analyzed for demographics about callers and their patients and information about consultation topics. There were 430 calls to the hotline from January 1, 2005, through June 30, 2006. Most calls (59.5%) were related to pregnant patients; 5.1% of the calls pertained to women currently in labor. The most common topic was HIV care in pregnancy (49.1%), particularly antiretroviral drug use (42.1%). HIV testing was discussed in 21.9%, and intrapartum treatment was discussed in 24.0%. Callers most often requested help choosing antiretroviral drug regimens; many of the discussions were about drug toxicities and viral resistance. Although the hotline received few calls about women in labor, the need for these consultations is expected to increase with the expanding use of rapid HIV testing. Access to 24-hour consultation can help ensure that state-of-the-art care is provided. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]