Mother-to-Child Transmission of HIV and Associated Factors Among Exposed Infants in Pastoralist Health Facilities, South Omo Zone, Ethiopia, 2020 – A Retrospective Cross-Sectional Study

BACKGROUND: Although HIV/AIDS is affecting all age groups, it is a primary cause of illness and deaths among children globally. A significant bulk of HIV infections in children under the age of 15 were as a result of vertical transmission, where it accounts for 95% of childhood HIV infections in Ethiopia. OBJECTIVE: To assess the proportion of mother-to-child transmission (MTCT) of HIV and associated factors among exposed infants on follow-up in pastoralist health facilities, South Omo, Ethiopia. METHODOLOGY: A retrospective, cross-sectional study was employed among 228 HIV-exposed infants. Medical records of HIV-exposed infant-mother pairs in the study institutions were extracted. The confirmatory HIV serostatus of every infant was taken at the end of 24 months. Data were entered in Epi Data 4.2 version and exported to SPSS version 25 for final analysis. Multivariable logistic regression analysis was used to identify significant predictor variables at P-value < 0.05. RESULTS: A total of 228 records were included in the analysis. The rate of HIV transmission was 5.3% (95% CI: 2.6–8.3%). Not receiving antiretroviral prophylaxis at birth (AOR = 5.8, 95% CI: 1.02–33.53), absence of maternal antiretroviral prior to current pregnancy (AOR = 5.6, 95% CI: 1.14–28.1), and mother’s advanced World Health Organization clinical stage of HIV (AOR: 10.5, 95% CI: 1.4–81) were associated with MTCT of HIV. CONCLUSION: This study identified a high proportion of MTCT among exposed infants in the study area. Not receiving antiretrovirals prior to pregnancy and advanced WHO clinical stage of HIV, and not getting antiretroviral prophylaxis at birth resulted in higher risk of MTCT of HIV. Hence, health workers and policy-makers should offer antiretroviral prophylaxis, put mothers on antiretroviral therapy and limit the stage of HIV at lower WHO clinical stages.