Dear Cathy-
I had a very similar experience to yours - mom of an 8 month old calling
hysterically in the midle of the night to get a breast pump because she had
just learned her partner had had unprotected sex with someone else.  Problem
is, as I understand it - that a test would not be conclusive at this point in
the disease, as she would not yet have seroconverted.

Also, as I understand from  a Susan Browne, MD speaking at the LLL conference
several years ago, women who do not yet test positive are at the greatest
risk of passing HIV on, because the virus is at high levels in the first
months after infection.  According to her, this stage and the one shortly
before death when the body is overcome by virus are the most dangerous.  So,
it would seem that it's the moms who test negative, but engage in high risk
behaviors who put their BF babies (or fetuses) at the greatest risk.  Am I
right on this?  But how do we assimilate this info into our counseling?  Does
this mean that if we learn dad has had an affair during the pregnancy we
should bring up HIV issues and the possibility of not BF?

The more I learn, the more questions I have...

Ro K. Andersen, IBCLC, LLLL
Winchester, Massachusetts, USA
Ro [log in to unmask]