By ASHA MNZAVAS THE EASTAFRICAN

TANZANIA HAS recorded an increased rate of mother-to-child HIV transmission in recent years, nullifying earlier gains in reducing preventable death among infants, according to a recent study by experts at the Muhimbili University College of Health Sciences in Dar-es-Salaam.

The study, titled "Status of the HIV/Aids Epidemics in Tanzania and Prospects for Control" states: "With the increasing infection rates among women of child- bearing age, the number of HIV-infected children and consequently the infant mortality rate is increasing."

The study was carried out by Dr Eligius Lyamuya and Prof Fred Mhalu, both of the Department of Microbiology and Immunology, and estimates that about 65,000 Tanzanian children have acquired HIV through mother-to-child transmission, which can occur during pregnancy, at delivery and through breast-feeding.

"The growing infant mortality rate caused by mother-to child transmission nullifies the gains achieved in the past in reduc ing preventable death among infants," the study notes.

The rate of mother-to-child transmission in Tanzania ranges from 25 per cent to 45 per cent, which is higher than the rate of 15-25 per cent reported in developed countries.

"These statistics clearly show that mother-to-child transmission is a major problem in Tanzania as in other African countries, and calls for urgent measures to control the situation," said Professor Mhalu.

Reports by the National Institute of Medical Research (NIMR) say that world- wide, mother-to child transmission accounts for most of the estimated 3,000 new HIV infection occurring daily in children under 15 years of age.

In 1997 alone, some 590,000 children were infected with HIV through this mode of transmission.

NIMR estimates about 90 per cent of all children infected with HIV since the beginning of the pandemic have been born in Africa, where there is a high prevalence of HIV among women of reproductive age.

The first cases of HIV/Aids were reported in Tanzania in 1983.

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