Hong Kong Centre for Health Protection reports 146 HIV infections, including two newborns, in first quarter of 2019
- Of reported cases, 128 were men and 18 women
- There have been 9,861 HIV infections in Hong Kong since 1984
Two newborn children who contracted HIV from their mothers were among 146 infections recorded in Hong Kong in the first four months of the year, the city’s disease watchdog said on Tuesday.
Dr Kenny Chan Chi-wai, a preventive medicine consultant at the Centre for Health Protection, said he believed the mothers were infected during pregnancy through sex and passed the virus to their infants during childbirth or from breastfeeding.
Chan said the mothers had not tested positive for the virus in their initial medical screenings during pregnancy.
The two infant infections are the second and third perinatal transmissions reported to the centre since a case in 2015.
Children infected with HIV can receive antiretroviral therapy, which is highly effective in prolonged suppression of the virus.
Pregnant woman are reminded to take prenatal HIV antibody tests as soon as possible
“Pregnant woman are reminded to take prenatal HIV antibody tests as soon as possible,” Chan said, as he announced the centre’s latest report on Tuesday.
