Hi Darillyn Do you keep your old emails? I see that there was some correspondence involving you, me and Dr Alla Gordina on this very topic in February 2013. You mentioned kissing in that query too. But for now, you're absolutely correct, and sorry to hear that the mom was a bit miffed... she may be denying the risk, but there is one and you were right to warn her of it. While EBM would be of huge value to the baby, the risk of child-to-mother transmission of the virus, and the consequent risk to the mother's sexual partner and possibly other children, would be of concern. There was a recent study, see http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22668802 Regarding HIV testing for the baby, WHO recommends provision of antiretroviral prophylaxis for all HIV exposed infants for 6 weeks, to mop up any virus acquired at birth. The baby should have been tested at birth and again at 6 weeks by polymeriase chain reaction (PCR) testing. Two negative tests by 6 weeks of age should establish that the baby is not infected. It would be important to use an assay which would detect the HIV sub-type in the mother's own country. A PCR will give an earlier diagnosis of HIV-infection because the window period is shorter. Early versions of the PCR did not always test for all HIV sub-types, and not all PCR tests have the same sensitivity. The choice of assay should be dictated by the prevailing HIV sub-types in the country. Furthermore, early testing is important so that infected infants, regardless of clinical or immune status, can immediately start medication to improve their chances of survival. A second confirmatory HIV test should be done, but this should not delay starting treatment. You can find out more from the WABA documents at http://hivbreastfeeding.org I hope this helps. Pamela Morrison IBCLC Rustington, England --------------------------------------------------------- Date: Thu, 2 Apr 2015 12:16:36 -0600 From: Darillyn Starr <[log in to unmask]> Subject: Risk of HIV transmission baby to mom through BF Recently, someone on our adoptive breastfeeding group has asked about breastfeeding a baby whose birth mom was HIV+. I basically just said that there have been cases where that has happened and that my preference would be for the baby to be fed in a way as close to breastfeeding as possible, so that, when a dependable negative screen was obtained, switching would be easier. I also said that if she could pump milk to feed the baby during that time, it would be very beneficial. She got a bit miffed with me and someone else said that if HIV can't be transmitted by kissing, it can't be by breastfeeding, either. What would you ladies (and gentleman) say to someone who wanted to breastfeed an adopted baby who was born of a woman who was known to be HIV+? Also, does anyone know how soon a dependable negative test can be done on a baby? --- This email has been checked for viruses by Avast antivirus software. http://www.avast.com *********************************************** Archives: http://community.lsoft.com/archives/LACTNET.html To reach list owners: [log in to unmask] Mail all list management commands to: [log in to unmask] COMMANDS: 1. To temporarily stop your subscription write in the body of an email: set lactnet nomail 2. To start it again: set lactnet mail 3. To unsubscribe: unsubscribe lactnet 4. To get a comprehensive list of rules and directions: get lactnet welcome