During 2018,857 children were born in the Dominican Republic to women with the HIV virus, according to the local AIDS/HIV council, Conavihsida. Of the children, 97 had contracted the disease from their mothers, a rate of 11.3%. Victor Terrero, director of Conavihsida, said that not long ago, the HIV infection rate from mothers was only 4%.
Terrero revealed that almost half of the HIV cases detected last year in those over 15 years old were Haitians. He said that of the 2,394 new cases identified, 1,300 were Haitian.
It is estimated that around 30% of all births in the country are to Haitian mothers. Terrero went on to say that 5.2% of the children born in the country are tested at 12 months old. Of these, 11.3% tested positive for the virus.
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Conavihsida
Listin Diario
8 May 2019